The Last President of Gallifrey
by dudelove85
Summary: Torture at the hands of Bellatrix Lestrange unlocks Hermione's hidden hertiage. She is Romanadvoratrelundar, former companion to the Doctor and President of Gallifrey during the Last Great Time War. With the Time Lady on their side, the war against Voldemort suddenly looks winnable. But for Harry and Ron, will that compensate for the loss of their best friend?
1. A Time Lady Reborn

_Chapter 1 – A Time Lady Reborn_

Every nerve in her body felt like it was on fire. Her bones groaned and ached under the pressure of the dark curse. A small part of her mind wanted to beg for the pain to stop but her mouth refused to move. Or maybe she was passed the point of being able to control her physical responses. At this point all Hermione Granger knew was pain, being delivered with relish by Bellatrix Lestrange.

Finally the curse was lifted and Hermione felt her muscles relax onto the cold stone floor of Malfoy Manor. She numbly turned her head and noticed something carved directly into the flesh on her forearm. Her eyes struggled to focus but after a few moments she recognised the word 'MUDBLOOD' standing out on her pale skin.

Slowly but surely the rest of her senses began to return to normal. Hermione vaguely registered the dark witch herself, strutting around her fallen body like a vulture stalking its prey. Twisting her head the other way she spotted Draco Malfoy, looking paler than usual, holding the jacket she had been wearing when she was captured by the snatchers, "Is she", Hermione heard the Malfoy heir stammer, "is she, you know".

"A dribbling vegetable", Bellatrix sniffed and drove her boot firmly into Hermione's ribs. The brunette wanted to play dead but the sharp pain from the assault drew an involuntary yelp. "It would appear there's still some life in the mudblood yet", the dark witch sounded almost ecstatic that she would get to continue the torture. "Did you find anything in her pockets?" she turned to her nephew sharply.

Startled by the question, Draco fumbled over his words before stammering, "Only this", his hand trembled as he handed something over to his Aunt.

Bellatrix studied the item in great detail. It was a brass pocket watch, very worn and dull looking. There was something unusual about the markings across the front surface, a weird jumble of circular patterns. They could be decorative but the dark witch suspected they could mean something else. Crouching down next to Hermione she got close enough to allow her tangled black hair to brush the teen's cheek, "These markings", she began in a husky whisper, "is this some kind of Order code?"

Hermione examined the watch closely, it had been in her possession ever since she was born but somehow, she had failed to spot the engraved markings. Her brown eyes flickered over the patterns, they looked familiar and somewhere in the back of her mind she knew exactly what they meant. Those distant thoughts wouldn't come to the forefront of her mind though and instead she spluttered, "It's just a pattern, there's no meaning". Her head sagged back against the stone floor, exhausted from the effort of talking.

The dark haired witch's gaze bore into Hermione, trying to use Legilimancy to ascertain the truth from the teen. Hermione felt the tendrils of a mental invasion and made no effort to resist, not that she probably could in her current condition. "She knows more than she's letting on", Bellatrix declared, "but someone has hidden them away". Leaping back to her feet she turned to Draco and said, "This will require more persuasive measures", she thrust the watch back into the blonde's hand, "watch her, I'll be back soon".

Hermione vaguely registered diminishing sound of Bellatrix's boots on the stone floor and finally allowed herself to relax. No doubt the dark witch would be back in due course, there was no way she would resist the chance to inflict more pain on an individual. Her thoughts quickly flicked towards Harry and Ron, who were locked up in the dungeon of the Manor. The trio had escaped from tighter spots in the last six and a half years but this one looked almost impossible.

Suddenly she felt a warmth around her body, Draco had placed her jacket across her torso, "I'm not dead yet", she croaked out but the blonde Death Eater didn't respond, "if you wanted to help me, you'd let me go".

"Aunt Bella would kill me", "Draco said numbly, "but she's convinced this watch has a hidden meaning. Tell me something about it and I'll ask her to call off the torture". He crouched down and placed the watch into her hand before standing back up again. The brunette witch felt the sincerity behind Draco's words but she doubted he had that much pull with Voldemort's second in command. She wanted to appreciate the gesture but after nearly seven years of abuse at the hands of Draco Malfoy, it would take more than this to redeem him in her eyes.

She felt the cool metal on her skin and turned it over a few times. Hermione didn't know where she had gotten this from. Initially she thought it had been a present from her parents but they denied ever seeing it. Sometimes she even forgot that she had the pocket watch, going several months without laying eyes on the device. She was pretty sure that it was broken, "Broken", Hermione whispered, "why would I carry a broken watch around with me?"

"You tell me", Draco snorted, "I thought it was a muggle thing, carrying around a faulty watch all the time". A bony finger pointed to the catch on top, "The catch is stuck, maybe it's not even a watch at all".

Another thought flashed across Hermione brain, had she ever tried to open it? She had just assumed that it was broken and hadn't made any effort to investigate, that didn't sound like her. _'It's time',_ a faint whisper echoed in Hermione's ears. At first she thought she had been hearing things, Draco's lips definitely hadn't moved. The voice sounded feminine, a little regal in tone like how she imagined the Royal Family would speak.

Her finger rubbed over the catch and she applied a small amount of pressure. Seconds later her mind was assaulted with hundreds of images that didn't make sense to her. Metal creatures with small circular pods on the outside and a sink plunger for an arm, the searing heat of fire and an emptiness that threatened to drown her soul. Then she got images of a strange blue box and a man that kept changing his face. This man wasn't a stranger to her, an old friend, maybe a lover or even both.

Gasping for breath the images stopped and it took Hermione a few moments to regain her senses. The first thing she noticed was Draco's face looming over her, "Granger, don't go dying on me", he called.

"That almost sounded like concern Malfoy", Hermione snorted, "probably for your own skin if Auntie Bella finds me dead on your watch". The Malfoy heir paled and the brunette suspected she had hit the nail on the head. There was silence before Hermione had a moment of clarity. She looked at the watch again and suddenly she was acutely aware of what it was, "A chameleon arch", she wheezed, "that's what this is".

Draco frowned, "What on earth is a chameleon arch?"

"Simple really, it rewrites your DNA to change your appearance not just as a physical level but also at a biological level. Developed during the golden age of Rassillion to protect Time Lords against their enemies-", Hermione suddenly stopped her lecture. She had no idea where this information had come from and more importantly, she was speaking like the voice in the watch. Her finger rubbed over the catch again, "I've let the genie out, no going back now", she sighed.

"Granger", Draco began cautiously and reached for his wand, "please don't make me do something I'll regret".

Hermione's brown eyes met with Draco's grey one, "Typical, the last person to see Hermione Granger alive is Draco bloody Malfoy". She thought about Harry and Ron again, she would never get the chance to say a proper goodbye. She hoped that would still like her real self once her true heritage had been unlocked.

With a sad sigh, Hermione Granger accepted her fate and pushed down fully on the catch. A stream of golden light poured out the watch and engulfed the brunette. Draco staggered back and shielded his eyes against the bright light, dropping his wand in the process. Hermione let out a loud scream as the light tore apart her DNA and began rewriting it back to its original form. Her arms extended outwards and her body allowed more of the golden energy to seep into her pores. As quickly as it had begun, the light vanished and the person previously known as Hermione Granger crashed back to the ground.

Alerted by the loud scream Bellatrix burst back into the room with her wand drawn, "Draco what did you do?" she spat with acid in her voice.

"N-nothing", her replied, "she opened the watch, got attacked by some golden light and then collapsed". Before the pair could continue their discussion, they were thrown off their feet by an invisible force and sent skidding across the ground.

Two teenage boys emerged from a dark corner of the room and gathered around Hermione's body, she was completely still, "What did you do to her ferret?" Ron hissed angrily.

Harry crouched down and placed two fingers against her neck, "She's alive", he frowned though as he continued to check her pulse, "This doesn't feel right, too many beats".

A thin wisp of golden energy escaped from Hermione's lips and suddenly her eyes burst open. She sat up bolt upright with a start, her eyes flicking across every corner of the room quickly. A look of confusion began to form on her face as her eyes began to focus on some of the lock of frizzy brown hair that dropped into her line of sight. She grasped at the lock and tugged at it violently, "More hair than last time, not a fan of frizz but that can be corrected".

She quickly leapt to her feet and began to pat herself down, "Hmm still feel underdeveloped but everything appeared to be in the right place, I sound really young too", she turned sharply towards Ron and grabbed him by edge of his top, "how old do I look?"

Flummoxed by the question, the red head stumbled over his words for a few seconds, "Well you are eighteen but I suppose you could pass for twenty at a push", he answered nervously.

"Eighteen", she gasped, "really, eighteen", she took a couple of paces back, "dear Rassillion, the Council would have a field day if they could see me now", she added in shock. Her hands got tangled in her mane of brown hair and she struggled to free herself, "Stupid hair, I can calculate Pi to forty thousand places in my head but I have to do it whilst looking like I just got out of bed".

"Erm Hermione", Harry began hesitantly, "are you feeling alright?"

The brunette turned slowly toward the messy haired teen. With a look of sympathy she placed her hands on his shoulder, "Harry I'm sorry", she sighed, "I'm so very sorry". Before she could continue her apology, a flash of green light whizzed over their heads. With lightning reactions, the brunette bent down, grabbed Draco's fallen wand and with a lazy flick, disarmed Bellatrix Lestrange, "Huh, wasn't sure if would still be able to do that", she muttered in surprise, catching the tumbling wand easily. At the same time something felt like it was escaping from her body. The wand had previous hummed to her but now it felt cold and lifeless, "Curious, these humans have the ability to manipulate energy at its purest", she continued to ramble, ignoring that empty feeling, "this is the greatest evolutionary step in thousands of years".

"Maybe I did scramble your brains mudblood", Bellatrix sneered, "now give me back my wand so I can teach you to respect your betters".

"Give you back the object that could be used to kill me", 'Hermione' snorted with laughter, "I've been locked away for a few years but I haven't lost my mind".

"Err", Harry began, "Hermione?"

"Respect your betters, you don't even know who you're talking to", 'Hermione' ignored Harry's pleas and held her head up confidently. She took a couple of paces forward, walking with the grace of ballet dancer before continuing, "Perhaps a proper introduction is in order. I am Lady Romanadvoratrelundar of the House of Heartshaven, former President of the planet Gallifrey in the constellation of Kasterborous". The assembled group looked blankly at the brunette until she smiled sweetly, "But that's a bit of a mouthful so you can call me Romana".

A stunned silence descended on Malfoy Manor until Bellatrix started laughing hysterically, "I really did drive you insane Granger, you almost had me going for minute". She reached into her robe and pulled out a large silver dagger, "Last chance, give me my wand or one of you dies".

Instead of looking scared Romana stared back, looking distinctly unimpressed with the dark witch's threat, "Oh Bella, I've run from Cybermen, battled Daleks and suffered torture from Davros himself so if you expect me to feel threatened by you then you're sorely mistaken".

A few seconds passed before anyone could fully absorb the words, this person calling themselves Romana but wearing the skin of Hermione Granger, had uttered. Even Bellatrix herself couldn't believe the disdainful way she had been dismissed by the brunette. She was prepared to throw the blade in her direction but Romana held up a hand, "Before you do that I'm going to give you a chance", she said imperiously. "Let me and my friends go and I won't come after you but if you throw that blade I will do everything in my power to stop your reign of terror".

To everyone's surprise Bellatrix actually appeared to be considering her options. She twisted the point of the blade against her finger, drawing a small amount of her own blood, "I think you know what my answer's going to be muddy", she taunted in response.

"I know", Romana shrugged, "but I had to try and also it brought me a few extra seconds for this to happen". A soft wheezing sound echoed inside Malfoy Manor and to everyone's shock, a red muggle telephone box slowly appeared between Bellatrix and the golden trio. The dark witch cried in anger and threw the blade but it bounced off the now solid phone box and hit the stone floor with a clang.

Romana breathed a sigh of relief and gently rubbed the surface of the box, "Really a phone box, that's the best you could do?" Harry and Ron frowned, was their friend really talking to this box like it was alive, "Alright I'm sorry I know you're out of practice, that's hardly my fault".

"Hermione", Ron tapped her on the shoulder, "why are you talking to that box?"

"It's not just a phone box Ronald", Romana snorted, "that's a type 80 TARDIS, it's chameleon circuit is fully working, although you wouldn't know it". A loud cry from the opposite end of the room heralded the arrival of more Death Eaters into the main reception room, "Come on you two, get in the box", she added more forcefully. Romana pushed the door to the TARDIS open and bundled Harry and Ron inside. She contemplated dropping Draco and Bellatrix's wands on the ground but the Time Lord thought it could be useful for further research. Without a second thought she jumped into the time ship and slammed the door shut.

 _ **A/N –**_ _So yeah this idea came out of nowhere. I've been recently watching a lot of classic Doctor, in particular the episodes featuring the original Romana (played by the late Mary Tamm). Whilst watching I noticed a lot of common mannerisms between Romana and Hermione Granger (bossy, brave and obscenely smart) and this is gradually evolved from there. More to come but don't expect regular updates, just a bit of advanced warning._


	2. Difficult Conversations

_Chapter 2 - Difficult Conversations  
_

The inside of Romana's TARDIS was dark, just a few lights around the central hexagonal console and a dim golden glow coming off the sides. The walls held the traditional circular patterns associated with the legendary time ship with black highlights around the spherical design. The central console was a tangle of wires that stretched all the way around the time rotor. Several other cables hung underneath the console where someone had attempted to hastily hotwire some new connections.

Romana's memories were still settling as her time as the human known as Hermione Granger assimilated with hers. Memories of the Time War, cast aside in her human form, rushed back and threatened to overwhelm the Time Lord. Coupled with the final memories of Hermione, suffering torture at the hands of a psychotic witch, Romana knew that she needed to get away and quickly. Punching a few buttons on the console she was about to send her ship into flight when a voice stopped her, "Hermione, what the hell is this place?" Ron asked.

Silently cursing herself for forgetting that Harry and Ron were onboard. Romana tried a think of a good way of explaining to Hermione's best friends that technically she had never existed. How would even begin that conversation? She was given a temporary reprieve by a loud banging noise on the doors of her TARDIS. The Death Eaters had clearly recovered from the shock and were trying desperately to get inside the time ship.

Romana was reasonably confident that the doors would keep the invaders out but their magic created an uncertain variable. A standard unlocking charm would probably not be powerful enough to overcome the TARDIS's defences but the former President of Gallifrey thought it would be wise to leave as quickly as possible. It also wasn't lost on her that Harry and Ron were itching to throw the doors open and start firing curses back at the Death Eaters. Choosing a destination quickly, Romana set the TARDIS in motion and it departed with a soft hum. It was a little too quiet for her taste and almost made her long for the loud groaning noise that was synonymous with the Doctor's TARDIS. "It's alright, we're safe from them", she announced once they had arrived at their destination.

"Good, now can we have some answers", Harry said hotly, "why did you apologise to me, where the hell are we and what was all that business about someone called Romana?"

"Straight to the point as always", the Time Lady sighed, this wasn't going to be an easy conversation. "The where is probably easier to answer", she began, "you're inside my TARDIS, that sounds for Time and Relative Dimensions in Space".

"Time and what?" Ron mumbled in confusion, "is this like one of those muggle airyplanes you keep talking about?" The red haired wizard took a quick look around, "Didn't realise muggles had expanding charms because this is much bigger on the inside".

Romama snorted with laughter, "That brings me onto the most difficult part", she took a couple of moments to prepare herself, "I'm not a human, I'm an alien and this is my ship". Blank looks met her statement, "Muggles can't make anything that's bigger on the inside, you're standing onboard an alien ship".

The two wizards stared back at the brunette and it was obvious to Romana that they didn't believe her. Had the situation been reversed, she probably wouldn't have believed the explanation either, "Very good Hermione", Harry chuckled, "you nearly had us going there for a minute but you can drop the act now", he added as Ron joined in with his laughter.

"Harry I'm not Hermione", Romana replied sternly, "my name is Romanadvoratrelundar or Romana for short". Seeing that the two teens needed a little more convincing, she unzipped her grimy hooded top and grabbed hold of Harry's hand, "You want proof, feel my heartbeat". Harry hesitated and the thought of touching Romana's chest, even when prompted by the Time Lady, "For God's sake don't be so bloody noble", she huffed and yanked Harry's hand to place it on her upper torso, "What do you feel?" she asked the wizard.

"Your heart", Harry said, "right where mine would be".

Romana nodded, at least Harry remembered some of his early school lessons from the time before Hogwarts. She then slowly moved Harry's arm down until he was touching the right side of her ribcage, "And what about now".

The effect was almost instantaneous when the bespectacled wizard felt her second heart. He scrambled back and began to feel for his wand but he quickly released that it had been taken at Malfoy Manor and not recovered. Romana watched him take a couple of quick breathes before stammering, "You've got two hearts", the Time Lady nodded, "you really are an alien".

"I was under the effects of something known as a chameleon arch", Romana explained, "it physically changes a Time Lord's DNA to make them something else. At the same time it creates a new personality for the person to fit with their new appearance. Until I opened the arch back at Malfoy Manor, I had no memories of who or what I really was".

"And just what is that", Ron spat, "and can we get the real Hermione back".

The Time Lady sighed, feeling slightly sorry for the pureblood wizard. He would have trouble operating a kettle, let alone understanding the concept of aliens from another world. She was also acutely aware of Ron's romantic feelings towards Hermione. Romana knew from her human self's memories that Hermione had felt the same way too. It must be hard for the red head to see the face of the woman he loved yet have to accept she wasn't the same person.

Romana pulled down a screen from the top of the console and gave it a couple to hard slaps to get it working. On the screen an image of another planet with a dark red surface appeared, "That's my home planet, Gallifrey", she began, "one of the shining wonders of the universe, or at least it was", she added with a heavy heart.

"Was?" Harry asked, intrigued by the images on the screen, "what happened to it?"

"There was a war", Romana replied, "between my people and another race called the Daleks. The thing last I remember before becoming Hermione was a bright flash and the planet disappearing from space". She perched on the console and looked towards the ceiling, "I'm not sure if it was destroyed or it something else happened to it". Her memory of escaping from Gallifrey was still returning but the huge explosion seemed to have taken out the Daleks too. Romana knew that the Doctor had taken The Moment out of the Omega vault, could that be the reason that both the Time Lords and the Daleks had been destroyed? The only positive option was that the sentient weapon had moved Gallifrey somewhere else.

An angry snort from Ron quickly brought Romana out of her musing, "You two are both crazy", he snapped, "Harry you can't believe this, clearly Bellatrix has done something to her mind".

"And my hand at the same time", Harry barked back, "I know that she's got two hearts, why would that insane bitch do that?"

"I don't know", Ron retorted, "but I'm getting out of here, I'm not listening to this anymore".

As Ron began to stomp towards the door Romana groaned, something told her that Ron would be the hardest person to convince. Just as the red head reached the door she called out, "I wouldn't go out there if I was you".

Ron ignored the Time Lady and pulled open the door. He went to put a foot outside but quickly noticed there was nowhere to place his foot. He nearly lost his balance and clung to the door frame for dear life, "Bloody hell", he cried. The TARDIS was no longer on Earth, it was in the vast emptiness of space orbiting a bright white star.

Romana looked outside before casually leaned on the doorframe next to Ron, "Congratulations Ron Weasley, you are officially the first wizard in space", she chuckled, "one small step and all that". The Time Lady looked at the giant ball of gas below, there was something peaceful about watching a star burn. The TARDIS shields kept most of the heat away, allowing them to bask in the rather pleasant temperature.

Moments later Harry stuck his head between them and took a look at the star below, "Where are we?"

"The constellation Canis Major", Romana began, "you two are a long way from home thanks to the TARDIS". The Time Lady looked over and for the first time she felt that Harry and Ron had accepted the truth, albeit reluctantly in Ron's case.

"Canis Major", Harry racked his brains for moment, "so that makes that star Sirius then?"

"Six years of Astronomy finally paid off for Harry Potter", Romana clapped her hands gently, "technically that's Sirius A because it's a binary star". She pointed out into the distance to a much smaller star, "That dwarf star is the other part called Sirius B. I thought maybe it would inspire us, draw something from the dog star".

The trio stood watching the star for several minutes and it almost felt like old times. But nothing would ever be the same between the trio again, "I never meant for any of this to happen", Romana began softly, "the war was about to end badly for us and the High Council of Gallfrey had locked up anyone who was going to oppose them".

"I thought you said you were the President", Ron asked bemused, "and aren't you a little young to be in charge of a country".

Romana wondered if she should explain about regeneration now but quickly decided against it. She would tell them soon but getting them to accept she wasn't the person they knew was hard enough without throwing body changing into the equation too. "Firstly Ron I wasn't just President of a country, I was President of the whole planet", she replied, "and for your information I'm not that young, I'm four hundred and thirteen years old".

"Blimey", Ron gasped, his mouth flapping open a couple of times, "well you look good for it".

"Thank you", Romana smiled, "to answer your original question I was overthrown as the rightful ruler and imprisoned but thanks to a few renegades I was able to escape. The plan was for me to hide in human form until it was safe to return to the planet", she crossed her arms and snorted, "unfortunately someone thought it would be funny to de-age my body into that of a child". She held her hand to fend off incoming questions, "I don't know how old I was when I arrived on Earth, best guess is that I arrived as a baby or a toddler at the very latest".

The trio stood in contemplative silence, none of them truly sure how long for. Both of Romana's hearts ached for the two humans standing beside her. Harry had lost many things that he cared about during his short life, his parents, his godfather, his familiar and now one of his best friends. Ron on the other hand loved Hermione deeply, even if it had taken him until their sixth year to realise it. Romana might have retained the memories of Hermione but it wasn't the same. It was like someone else had moved permanently into her skin with no chance of the bookworm being able to return. Hermione hadn't died in a technical sense but in all the ways that counted she had. Her friends wouldn't get the chance to mourn because an identical looking person was standing in her place.

Despite the shields around the ship, it soon began to get cold with the doors open. Romana ushered the teens away and gently closed the doors, "So what happens now?" Harry asked the Time Lady softly.

"Well first thing I need to do is get you back to Earth", she replied, "after that it's up to you". Romana bit her lip, did she want to get involved in another war so quickly after escaping from one? She shook her head in defiance, the Time Lady owed it to Hermione to complete the mission she had started, "But if you don't want me to stick around", she shrugged, "I'd understand if you didn't because this must be-".

"Stay", Ron said firmly, "we could use all the help we can get", Romana nodded but internally she felt deflated. Ron hadn't asked her to stay for personal reasons, more because they felt obliged to keep her around.

Romana tried her best to keep her disappointment off her face but even the normally emotionally stunted Harry and Ron noticed there was something wrong. As the Time Lady idly wondered around the console, the dark haired teen stated, "It's not that we wouldn't like having you around but..." his voice trailed off as he attempted to find the right words.

"You don't really know me", Romana replied, trying to keep the bitterness out of her voice, "look we'll talk about this later", she continued in an attempt to change the subject, "I could do with cleaning myself up and I'm sure you feel the same way". She flicked two switches on the console, one put them into the Time Vortex to grant them as much time as needed. The other switch opened a small door opposite the main TARDIS ones, "You'll find a bathroom and wardrobe through that corridor, take a left at the first intersection and it's the twelfth door on the right".

Harry and Ron looked at each other, concerned with the directions they had been given but mostly because they were worried they had upset the Time Lady. Romana pretended to look busy at the console until the teens had left the room and which point, she visibly deflated and slumped against the desk. Their conversation had gone better than expected but that didn't make it any harder. It was stupid of her to think that things would return to the way they had been. Romana was an unknown quantity to them and more importantly, she had taken the place of their best friend.

The brunette stripped herself of her pale blue hooded top and kicked it dismissively underneath the console. She would definitely depose of that and all of her battered clothes as quickly as possible. She reached into her jeans and pulled out the wand she had taken from Malfoy Manor and quickly remembered that it had belonged to the young heir. Turning it over in her hand something about it didn't feel right. Actually that wasn't completely correct, she didn't feel anything at all. It might as well have been a carved stick for all she knew.

Tentatively she pointed it at her discarded top and said clearly, " _Wingardium Leviosa_ ", but the fabric didn't move an inch. " _Lumos",_ she tried something else but there wasn't even a flicker from the wand. Romana wanted to tell herself that it was the wand but she knew the truth. It had been Hermione's human DNA that possessed the ability to do magic and now that she had been returned to normal, that talent had gone away. Time Lord DNA was special but magic was one thing that had never manifested itself. Romana wouldn't be helpless in the upcoming battle, Time Lords possessed many talents that normal humans and wizards didn't have but in this fight for the magical world, the Time Lady wouldn't be able to lift a wand in anger. Feeling more deflated than ever, Romana left the wand on the console and slunk away to clean herself up.

 _ **A/N -**_ _Wow...I mean wow, I really wasn't expecting the level of response that I received for the first chapter of this story so thank you to everyone who followed/favourite/reviewed._

 _The decision to take magic away from Hermione/Romana might be controversial for some. After much thought, the idea of a Time Lady (who has the ability to regenerate, travel in time and a level of intelligence that we couldn't begin to comprehend) with the power of magic creates a vast imbalance in both the Potterverse and the Whoniverese. Time Lords/Ladies are already viewed as Gods in some parts of the universe, add in magical powers and Romana would be totally unstoppable with barely any weaknesses and that doesn't make for a great story...in my opinion anyway._


	3. Shell Cottage

_Chapter 3 – Shell Cottage  
_

The wardrobe room of Romana's TARDIS wasn't as substantial as she hoped and truthfully the Time Lady was a little disappointed with the selection. This Type 80 TARDIS hadn't seen a lot of action prior to Romana commissioning it for her purpose. Primarily it had been used as a battle TARDIS during the Time War so the need for a vast array of clothes wasn't necessary. There was still more than enough for Romana's needs but the fact that the wardrobe didn't stretch across several the area of several football pitches was something she was going to change in the future.

Romana was still feeling out what this regeneration preferred in terms of tastes. Her first two incarnations were very fashion conscious, especially her first body. Her third incarnation was definitely more practical but then again she was more concerned about leading her people during the war with the Daleks. Her human self was certainly not concerned with fashion, Hermione Granger was very much a jeans and jumper kind of girl.

The first thing Romana did after taking a very long shower was try to tame her wild hair. She didn't want to get rid of all the frizz, the Time Lady felt keeping some of it would honour her human side. Instead of a wild mane the brunette's hair fell against her shoulders in roughly straightened waves. Since she would probably be involved in some kind of battles against Voldemort's forces, Romana settled for a practical pair of fitted brown trousers tucked into a matching pair of brown knee high boots. She had teamed that with a light blue blouse, keeping a couple of top buttons undone and rolling the sleeves half way up her arm.

The outfit didn't feel complete and that's when the Time Lady spotted something on one of the racks. It was a red knee length jacket with several golden buttons adorning the cuffs. Instantly Romana fell in love with the jacket and quickly slipped her arms inside the sleeves. The red and gold matched the Gryffindor colours so perfectly that finding it must've been fate.

Filled with a renewed sense of hope after her wobble earlier in the day, Romana thrust her hands into the pockets and practically skipped into the console room. To her surprise Harry and Ron were already waiting for her. She was almost certain they would get lost inside the maze of corridors. Their jaws almost dropped at the transformation in the Time Lady's appearance, bringing a small smile to her face, "Close your mouths boys, you'll catch flies like that".

"S-sorry", Harry stammered in response, "still getting used to all these changes. Hermione wasn't real much of a girly girl".

"Yes I remember", Romana sighed, "a shame really, she really would've turned heads at school with a look like this".

"She did turn heads", Ron shot back, feeling a little put out by the Time Lady's choice of words.

Stung by the harshness of the youngest Weasley boy, Romana took a couple of moments to gather herself, "I didn't mean it like that", she began, "this incarnation appears to be a little ruder than previous ones".

"Previous incarnations?" Harry asked in shock, "do Time Lords get reincarnated or something".

"Close", Romana cursed her slip of the tongue, she could do without explaining regeneration at this point. Leaning on the console and putting on her best teacher voice she stated, "A Time Lord gets thirteen lives. When they reach the end of one of those lives, either through old age or physical injury we undergo a process called regeneration. Everything about you gets rewritten, appearance, likes, dislikes and things like that. Underneath you're the same person but externally everything is different".

Romana allowed them a couple of moments to absorb this information before adding, "Before you ask this is my fourth incarnation so I still have nine lives left". To distract herself from the gaping stares, she began inputting their destination into the flight computer, "Maybe I'll show you my other three incarnations one day but now isn't the time".

"Erm yeah, great", Ron eventually replied, "anything else you want to surprise us with?"

"Probably but then again it wouldn't be a surprise if I told you right now", the Time Lady replied with a bright smile. She clapped her hands together and brought up a map of the United Kingdom on one of the four screens adorning the console, "Any idea where we should go next?" she asked the two teens.

"So you're really going to help us fight Voldemort?" Ron suddenly slapped his hands over his mouth, he had forgotten about the taboo on the name.

"Relax Ronald", Romana chuckled, "if any Death Eaters manage to track us into the Time Vortex I'd be amazed". She had a quick thought and tapped a button on the console, "but just to be sure I'll change our arrival time to a few days after we left Malfoy Manor, that'll give plenty of time for the tracking charms to wear off". Once again she pointed at the map, "So where shall I take us?"

Ron looked closely at the map on screen, "Dobby said he was taking Luna and the others to Bill's place", he circled an area on the northern tip of Wales, "but I can't work out where it is, the map's too small". Romana rolled her eyes at the naivety of the wizard and pushed a button on the console. Ron squeaked in surprise as the map began to zoom in on the area he indicated, "How the bloody hell did you do that".

"Magic", Romana deadpanned, drawing a snort of laughter. The map began to automatically scroll across the coastline, "Touchscreen technology, this'll all the rage fifteen years into your future. Just tap the screen when you see something you recognise".

The red haired wizard studied the map carefully for a few minutes until he spotted something he recognised, "There, I remember it being a few miles outside the nearest muggle village". The map stopped moving and the Time Rotor began to hum gently. With a small grin Romana pulled down on a large lever on the console and the wizards felt the ship begin to vibrate, "Hey what's going on".

"Just relax Ron", Romana sighed, "we'll be at your brother's place in a few seconds", she counted a couple of beats in her head before throwing the lever the other way, "in fact we're here".

As Romana led the teens towards the main door, Harry reached out and grabbed her arm, "Could you", he paused and took a deep breath, "could you pretend to be Hermione when we meet Bill and Fleur".

"Harry Potter, I'm not going to hide who I am", Romana snapped, offended with the suggestion from the messy haired teen.

"That came out wrong", the Time Lady glared haughtily at Harry, "what I meant was, this will be a hard enough encounter without having to explain this as well", he held his arms out and gestured at the TARDIS.

Romana considered the request for a moment. Harry made a valid point, even if his way of explaining it had been pretty poor, "Fine", she reluctantly agreed, "I'll play along but I'm not going out of my way to conceal it either. I'm a Time Lady, possibly one of the few left in the universe and I'm bloody proud of that fact".

Without waiting for their response, Romana opened the doors and was immediately hit by a strong sea breeze. She took a quick look at the TARDIS and sighed, "Still a phone box, really". The bright red box stood out against the natural shades of the long grass overlooking the stony beach below, "Brilliant I've encountered the only other stubborn TARDIS in the fleet", she grumbled. Moments later Harry and Ron exited the box, both of them shooting wary glances at the Time Lady. Perhaps she had been a little harsh with Harry. He certainly wasn't implying that she should deny her Time Lord heritage, merely that she play along with everyone's expectation. Only a handful of people were aware of her existence, unfortunately most of them were on the opposite side of the war.

Romana locked up the TARDIS and hiked up the trail towards the only house. Shell Cottage certainly lived up to its name. The four outer walls of the property were embedded with hundreds of tiny shells that glistened in the late evening sun. That wasn't the Time Lady's most pressing concern though, marching in their direction were a very weary looking Bill and Fleur Weasley. "Ron?" the eldest Weasley sibling called out, his wand pointing at the trio, "what game did Mum used to make you and Ginny play when you were five years old".

"Bill, really", Ron groaned but his oldest brother kept his wand trained on him. Letting out a deep sigh he answered, "Miss Polly's afternoon tea shop, I got to play the part of Miss Polly". Romana couldn't help but snort with laughter, Harry looked close to breaking into hysterical laughter, "Did you really have to bring that up Bill", Ron added with a low whisper.

"Had to use something that only you would've known the answer to", Bill replied and carefully lowered his wand. His stone suggested that he was anything but apologetic for embarrassing his kid brother, "Good to see you again Harry and Hermione". He shook them both by the hand but recoiled slightly when he touched Romana's skin, "Blimey Hermione we need to get you inside, your hands are freezing".

Romana smiled politely at the eldest Weasley but said nothing in response. Time Lords had lower body temperatures than humans so her skin would feel much cooler to the touch, "Where have you three been", Fleur exclaimed, "you've been missing for five days, Dobby's been frantically searching everywhere for you".

"Five days, six hours and seventeen minutes", Romana stated idly, "that's how long we've been gone for". Everyone turned to stare at the brunette who coughed and shook her head, "I mean, I hope Dobby hadn't overworked himself looking for us", she added quickly.

"We managed to overpower the Death Eaters", Ron tried to cover for Romana's slip, "made a run for it and apparated into a muggle town, that's where we got the clean clothes from". Bill and Fleur frowned, considering the tale they were being spun, "We hid for until we were sure that no one had followed us and came straight here".

"I see", Bill said slowly, not fully convinced by his brother's story but he didn't want to push the issue too much, "clearly life on the run hadn't done you too much harm".

"Especially you Hermione", Fleur interjected, "I don't remember seeing you look so radiant before", the blonde haired woman frowned curiously at the Time Lady.

"Not bad for my age I suppose", Romana shrugged, "shall we get inside, it is a little cold out here", she quickly changed the subject but not before Harry shot her a warning glare.

Bill led the group up the garden path but not before his wife spotted the disguised TARDIS at the far end of the wards, "When did the muggles install one of those boxes in the area?" she mused out loud. Harry, Ron and Romana struggled to reign in their sniggers at the comment.

Fortunately Bill came to their unintended rescue, "We've patched up Luna and Griphook as best as we could. They're all resting now so best not to disturb them until morning". The eldest Weasley pushed the door to his cottage open, revealing a cosy kitchen with a small living room just in sight through a door at the far end, "We've got a spare room where Harry and Ron can sleep", Bill continued, "you're more than welcome to share with Luna", he said to Romana, "I assume you've had enough of sleeping next to these two".

"Thank you Bill", Romana faked a tired stretch, "I'm not feeling that tired at the moment, I might stay up for a bit".

"You need all the rest you can get", Fleur said firmly, "I don't care if you've been living comfortably in that muggle town, you should have a quick health check up-".

Noticing Fleur producing her wand, Romana quickly grabbed Ron and Harry by the arm and practically dragged them away, "Actually I am feeling a little tired, we'll do that check up in the morning". The trio stumbled away, leaving a very confused and bemused Bill and Fleur behind.

It wasn't until they were upstairs that Romana finally let go of their arm, "Blimey you're stronger than you look", Ron commented and rubbed his arm.

"Unique Time Lord biology", Romana waived his concerns away, "which is exactly why Fleur or anyone else can come near me with a wand, especially if you want to keep up this little charade".

Ron found the spare bedroom and pushed the door open. There was only room for one small bed but another one could be easily conjured, "You can take the bed Romana", Harry offered.

"Thanks but I wasn't lying I'm really not that tired", the Time Lady shrugged, "Time Lords only need to sleep about three or four times a month. I should be good for sleep for at least another few days". She heard the teens grumbled something about more surprises but she chose to ignore their complaints, "I need to figure out how to get us into Gringotts without starting a war with the Goblin Nation, that should keep me quiet for a few minutes at least".

Harry and Ron looked at each other and shrugged. The dark haired teen took the bed whilst Ron conjured a sleeping bag and climbed inside. Soon enough the room was filled with their gentle snores. Romana meanwhile sat on the floor, her back resting against the wall. She wondered if there was a way to avoid a huge scale battle between the light and dark. Something like that would see a serious loss of life on both sides. A small idea began to form in the back of her mind but she would need to check the TARDIS before committing down that road. With nothing to do until everyone in the house was asleep, Romana quietly mediated and watched the sun set over in the sky. She had a busy night ahead of her.


	4. Lovegood

_Chapter 4 – Lovegood_

It was close to dawn, the blackness of night was slowly giving way to the first light of day. Everyone in Shell Cottage was safely tucked up in bed, except for Romana. The Time Lady had given up the pretence of sleeping several hours ago and had retreated to the solitude of her TARDIS. Her ship was fairly new in comparison with others and hadn't seen too much action during the war. Nevertheless almost constant bombardment from Dalek fighters and sitting idle for over fifteen years had taken its toll on the systems. Running repairs were needed to ensure that it would be fully reliable when called upon.

The Time Lady had ripped open several panels underneath the main console with the aim of creating temporary pathways between vital systems. Three long cables snaked around the console, giving an air of control chaos to the ship. That had only taken Romana a few minutes, the rest of the time had been spent creating something to help in the fight against Voldemort. Technically she had come up with two things but her main project would have to wait until the TARDIS was back up to full power.

Since she could no longer use magic Romana had decided to create the next best thing, her own sonic screwdriver. The Doctor's had come in very useful over the years and her TARDIS came equipped with blueprints to make one for herself. The main problem was finding enough parts to make it operational. She was currently parked on a cliff face in the remotest part of the United Kingdom. Not only that, she was parked next to a house belonging to a wizarding couple. They were unlikely to have any circuit boards, insulated wire or resonating crystals in their cupboards.

After scavenging as much as she could from the TARDIS, Romana had set up a temporary workbench opposite the main door. The pieces of her screwdriver were slowly coming together, she had even found some miniature welding equipment in one of the many rooms on the ship. A look of concentration was etched on her face as the Time Lady carefully sealed the final few pieces together. She pulled a dark pair of goggles off her face so they hung around her neck and inspected the fruits of her labour. The screwdriver was constructed from several vertical strips of gold and silver plate. The top section was bulbous and least twice the width of the main body of the screwdriver. Romana flicked her wrist and this section popped open to reveal a clear coloured crystal, "Alright, here goes", she muttered to herself.

The brunette held the device at arms length, a backfiring sonic screwdriver could cause some serious damage. To her relief the screwdriver worked perfectly, emitting a gentle hum as the crystal inside glowed red. Romana was so delighted with her achievement that she failed to once the door open, "That makes a very beautiful noise", the familiar airy voice of Luna Lovegood called out.

"Luna", Romana shrieked, nearly dropping her screwdriver in the process, "could you knock next time". It was then that she realised that Luna was inside her TARDIS, how on Earth was she going to keep her cover now? "Luna, I can explain this", she continued.

Luna though either didn't hear or ignored her comment. Instead the blonde glided towards the Time Lady and scanned her with her pale blue eyes, "I don't believe we've been introduced", she began, "I've been waiting to meet the real you for a very long time".

Romana's mouth flapped open a couple of times. Luna saw things that other people didn't but how she had picked up on the Chameleon Arch was blowing the Time Lady's mind. The effects should've been untraceable to everything in the known universe. Obviously when the Time Lords wrote about the known universe, they hadn't taken Luna Lovergood into consideration, "But, how did you know?" Romana stammered in response.

"Easy", Luna smiled, "your magical signature didn't feel right", she continued with an almost dismissive tone like deciphering Time Lord engineering was the easiest thing in the world. "It was never full joined with your spirit, like it had been attached to you rather than a part of you".

For a few moments Romana was stunned, disbelieving that it had been that easy for Luna. She briefly wondered why the blonde hadn't said anything before but then she remembered that Hermione wasn't the most open minded of humans. If Luna had come to her and suggested that Hermione wasn't real, the witch would've laughed in her face. At least now someone else was in on her secret, that was a heavy weight off her shoulders. Straightening out her jacket she smiled warmly at the blonde, "Romanadvoratrelundar, Time Lady of Gallifrey but you can call me Romana for short", she introduced herself.

"Romama, I like it", Luna's voice lilted, "better than Fred, I already know one of them". Once again Romana was staggered by the perception of the witch and was very tempted to test out her new screwdriver to find out if there was anything unique about Luna. The blonde though spotted the gold and silver device in her hand, "That's an interesting wand", she commented.

"What this", the Time Lady held up the screwdriver, "it's not a wand Luna, it's a scientific instrument but I suppose it can do many things a wand can". She turned the device over in her hand, it didn't feel the same as holding a wand. Hermione's wand felt warm to the touch, like it was alive. The screwdriver was cold and clinical, a mere tool to use and not an extension of her body, "Unfortunately I can't use my old wand or any wand for that matter", Romana sighed, "hopefully this will allow me to be useful".

The Time Lady perched herself on the edge of the console but not before plugging the screwdriver into the desk to install the software. Without magic she would be limited to diagnostic and intellectual support. The sonic was a powerful tool but it wasn't an offensive weapon. There was something in the console though that could come in handy, assuming this regeneration retains some of the skills her predecessor did.

Fumbling under the lip of the console, Romana found a hidden switch which released a panel on the desk top. Inside was golden coloured weapon, similar in size to a handgun. Like her screwdriver the weapon was slightly bulbous at the end of the barrel. Just seeing it again brought back horrible memories for Romana. Being President of Gallfrey during the Time War wasn't just a ceremonial position, she was expected to defend her people. This weapon had killed hundreds of Daleks, usually in the most painful ways possible. The lucky ones were instantly incinerated, the rest were boiled from the inside. Romana could still hear the horrible screeching sound of a Dalek dying in horrific pain and it made her physically sick.

"The nargles have arrived again", Luna commented, "this is the worst infestation I've seen".

Romana snorted bitterly at the witch's words, "Oh Luna, you have absolutely no idea what I've done in the past". Reluctantly grabbed the weapon, playing with it nervously, "There's a tradition amongst my people", she continued, "when we graduate from the Academy, most of us pick a title that we will be known by. Usually this comes with some kind of promise or motto that becomes our moral code". Luna was listening intently as the Time Lady told her story, "I left Gallifrey before I could do that, didn't really bother me at the time. I mean I was only a hundred and forty, far too young to worry about the rest of my life".

"It does pay to keep your options open", Luna nodded, not even batting an eyelid at Romana's age declaration.

"Now though I really wish I had", Romana sighed, checking the magazine of the weapon, "maybe my last incarnation wouldn't have had such disregard for the suffering of other creatures. Admittedly Daleks are genocidal maniacs who would've killed us in a nanosecond but that's not the point". With a flick of a small catch on the side the weapon hummed into life, "She actually enjoyed it to begin with", Romana snorted, "revelled in the praise from her fellow Time Lords". A heavy sigh echoed off the TARDIS walls, "All that death took its toll though and I was out of control. Fortunately a good friend of mine talked some sense into me before it was too late".

"Sounds like a pretty smart person", Luna smiled, more interested in the round patterns on the TARDIS wall.

Romana chuckled, "Don't let him hear you say that, the ego on the man is unparalleled without having more praise heaped on him". Romana lost herself in her memories of the Doctor, by then in his nameless incarnation. Despite the man's protests, he was still the Doctor to her, "He pulled me out of that bloodthirsty frenzy, reminded me of what was important", she said softly.

"Now you're worried that you'll be overcome by the same feelings if you use that weapon again?" Luna filled in the blanks for herself.

"I can see why you were in Ravenclaw", Romana tossed the weapon in the air a couple of times, her war incarnation had been a deadshot and something was telling her that this body retained some of that skill. The hidden compartment also housed a brown leather holster that the Time Lady pulled out, "You can be my witness Luna, this will be the last time I use this Sonic Blaster". Romana strapped the holster to her waist and inserted the weapon, "I will only use the stun setting though, the Death Eater might want to kill us but I'm not sinking to that level again".

Luna smiled vacantly at the space around Romana, "The nargles are going. Shame, I was enjoying their company", the blonde shrugged. She picked up a small cube that was on Romana's workbench, "What does this do?" she asked.

"Be careful with that", the Time Lady snatched it out her hand, "that's a sensitive piece of Time Lord engineering. It's too unstable to be handled regularly and without the TARDIS at full power, one misfire could see you lost forever".

"Sounds dangerous", Luna said eagerly, "will you use that on He Who Must Not Be Named?"

"If I can", Romana placed it carefully back on the table, "we need to get something out of Gringotts first, something that's essential to his downfall". The Time Lady had dedicated some of her brain power to that problem as well. Harry was convinced there was a Horcrux inside the LeStrange vault. The problem was how to get it out the vault? The boys were seriously contemplating a raid, breaking into the bank and stealing it. The entering part would be easy with the TARDIS, the real problem was getting in to the vault. Griphook the Goblin was still at Shell Cottage so maybe he could be persuaded to help. Asking a favour from a Goblin though was bound to cost them something significant. Romana especially didn't like the way Griphook was eyeing up the Sword of Gryffindor which was still in Harry's possession.

"It's a shame you can't ask the Goblins to hand it over", Luna shrugged, "Daddy and I once asked them to investigate Stubby Boardman's vault. They were only too happy-".

"What did you say?" Romana snapped, her attention fully on Luna.

The blonde blinked a couple of times before answering the Time Lady, "Stubby Boardman or Sirius Black as you might know him".

"No not that", Romana shook her head vigorously, "you said ask the Goblins to hand it over". She slapped herself on the forehead, "Of course, it's a simple as that, why didn't I think of that before". Romana disconnected her screwdriver from the console, "Come along Luna, we've got to wake the boys and tell them the good news".

Luna watched as the Time Lady practically skipped past her, still uncertain what she had in mind, "And they call me crazy", she smiled and took off after Romana. Something had put the Time Lady in a good mood which could only be a good sign for the others.


	5. Goblins

_Chapter 5 – Goblins_

Romana shouldn't have been too surprised to find everyone else inside Shell Cottage already wide awake. Bill was sitting at the kitchen table nursing a large cup of coffee whilst Fleur busiest herself preparing breakfast. The newlywed Weasley's were surprised when the back door burst open though, both of them quickly reaching for their wands and pointing them directly at the new arrivals, "Hermione, you scared the life out of us", Bill sighed, lowering his wand back to the table.

"I apologise Bill", Romana nodded, "but I've something important to discuss with the boys, I guess I got a little overexcited".

"Can it not wait", Fleur asked gently. Romana never noticed the previous day but her accent seemed much less prominent than on previous occasions. Either the French witch had been practicing or the translation circuit on her TARDIS was fully operational. That could be useful when speaking with the Goblins of Gringotts, "At least have some coffee, you've been outside for hours and Luna", she turned on her fellow blonde, "you should be in bed resting".

Luna smiled vacantly at the Frenchwoman, "The universe inside Romana's box was calling to me", she stated with a completely straight face.

To their credit neither Bill nor Fleur batted an eyelid at the bizarre words that came out of Luna's mouth. Romana though scratched the back of her head nervously. Luna was incredibly insightful, too insightful for the common witch or wizard who simply passed off her ramblings as mild insanity. She did briefly wonder if there was some alien blood somewhere in the Lovegood line but investigating that would have to wait for another day, "Actually I will have some coffee Fleur", the Time Lady said quickly in an attempt to divert attention from the blonde Ravenclaw. "Why don't you go back to Romana's box Luna, just don't press too many buttons".

"Oh thank you", Luna practically beams, "Iris and I will be able to continue our conversation from earlier". Romana resisted the urge to gape at the blonde as she skipped out the door. She had absolutely no idea who Iris was, although she suspected Luna was referring to the sentient presence at the core of her TARDIS. No ordinary human should've been able to do that. If she ever decided to follow in the Doctor's footsteps and take a human companion, Luna Lovegood would definitely be considered.

"I do worry about that girl sometimes", Bill sighed, "she hasn't been right since her mother passed away".

"And who is this Romana person that she was talking about?" Fleur asked her husband before turning towards Romana, "you really shouldn't indulge her like that", the blonde scolded.

The Time Lady though merely shrugged, "She's not doing any harm, in fact I think you're grossly underestimating her". She took a quick sip of her coffee, "Not bad, not a patch on Integratie Seven though, the beans really mature under their twin suns".

"Integratie Seven, never heard of it", Bill frowned, "is that a Muggle thing?"

Romana cursed her slip, she was going to have to watch that in the future, "Er, yeah", she quickly mumbled, "Harry and Ron still upstairs?" the Time Lady didn't wait for an answer and quickly hurried upstairs, coffee cup in hand.

"Ever get the feeling you're missing something?" Bill asked his wife once Romana had left the room.

Fleur nodded, "There's definitely something different about Hermione but I can't quite put my finger on it".

Scrambling up the stairs as quickly as she could, Romana soon heard some voices from the smallest bedroom at the rear of the cottage. She identified them quickly as Harry, Ron and the Goblin Griphook who had also been rescued from Malfoy Manor. Romana had learned a little bit about the indigenous species on Earth at the Academy. Obviously most of the topic covered Humans with a little bit about Silurians throw in.

One species that didn't appear on the list at the Time Lord Academy was Goblins. Thinking back over Hermione's magical education, several magical species were mentioned like Chimera's and Dragons. Unicorns were listed as mythical creatures that likely existed as a short lived mutation from horses but died out fairly quickly.

Goblins though were not native to the magical world like wizards believed, there weren't even native to Earth. The Goblin home world had been rich in precious metals like gold, silver and platinum. Unfortunately the natural greed of Goblins had seen their planet drained of its natural resources. What little was left was fought over bitterly by the surviving Goblins until few were left. The Time Lords knew they had fled their planet but never knew where they had ended up, until now.

"We need to get inside a Gringotts vault", she heard Harry say to Griphook. Romana rolled her eyes, no doubt this was the beginning of a crazy, poorly thought about plan which relied mostly on luck than actual planning.

Deciding to stop this plan in its tracks, Romana pushed the door open and quietly stepped inside, "Romana", Ron said in surprise, "we thought you were outside".

"I was", the Time Lady replied coolly, "tell me Ronald, were you going to include me in this plan of yours?" She watched as Harry and Ron exchanged nervous glances at each other, "I see", Romana continued, taking their nervousness to mean they planned to do this alone. She calmly took another swig of coffee before leaning casually against the wall, "Please, explain this plan of yours".

Harry and Ron had a slient conversation, deciding between them who was going to explain the plan to the irritated Time Lady. "Polyjuice", the dark haired wizard blurted out, "Ron was going to us the potion and the wand you acquired from Bellatrix Lestrange to sneak into her vault".

Romana nodded carefully, it was a pretty sound plan with one glaring omission, "And who's going to take the Polyjuice?" Once again Harry and Ron stared blankly at the brunette, making it clear they hoped she would be the one to take the potion. "Small problem with that boys, what makes you think the potion will work? Aren't you forgetting that I'm not human, there's no telling what effects Polyjuice potion will have on me".

"Couldn't we just try, you know, one quick swig to see?" Harry asked in hope.

"Not without thorough testing", Romana snorted, "I'm deathly allergic to aspirin and intolerant of other human medicines. I'm not trying a bit of magical potion and hoping for the best". She then spotted the sword of Gryffindor sitting idly in the corner, "Good thing one of us has a plan", the Time Lady stated and walked over to the sword.

The blade was exactly as she remembered from Hermione's memories, polished Goblin silver with rubies in the hilt. She tested the blades weight and giving it a quick swing, deciding quickly that it was perfectly balanced, "The perfect sword", she declared, "not just for the absolute novice like me but also for the most experienced swordsman".

"Theft, stolen from its rightful owners", she heard the raspy voice of Griphook the Goblin spit out from the armchair he was sitting in. The Goblin's chair was facing away from the trio but despite this, he was still able to pick her voice, "Hermione Granger, vault 817. I remember the day you first came into Gringotts".

Romana smiled to herself and still with the sword in hand, she slowly crossed the bedroom floor and settled into the other armchair which was positioned opposite Griphook, "Theft's a rather strong word Griphook", she began, a dangerous smirk plastered on her face, "since the materials used to make this sword are not from your native world, some might say you stolen this from the humans".

It wasn't often that a Goblin was surprised so it gave Romana a strong sense of satisfaction to see the stunned expression on Griphook's face. That look soon turned into the more familiar Goblin snarl, "I have no idea what you're talking about".

"Tell me Griphook, do your history books still contain the legend of Goblaynia, the home world of the Goblins?" Romana asked.

"Home world?" Harry picked up on the wording of Romana's question, "are you trying to tell us that Goblins are actually aliens?"

"Of course Harry", Romana answered casually, "natural scavengers, miners and of course, extremely greedy, Goblins mined their home planet of Goblaynia almost out of existence". She turned her glare on Griphook, "Is this ringing any bells Griphook?"

The Goblin stared blankly by the Time Lady could tell that he was rattled, "Slander, filthy slander", he spat defensively.

Romana sighed, she knew this wouldn't be easy but she wasn't expecting Griphook to show this much resistance. Maybe a change of tactics was needed, _"You're very fortunate I'm not informing the Shadow Proclamation of your crimes",_ she hissed in perfect Gobbledygook, " _unauthorised settlement on a Class Five planet, I wonder what the punishment for that is"._

"You can't", Griphook cried in a panic, "he promised us that we would not be punished for our crimes".

"Who promised you this Griphook?" Romana asked out of curiosity.

The Goblin regained his composure, straightening out his pyjamas, "After the last Goblin uprising he negotiated peace between the Goblins and the wizarding community". He leaned a little closer and whispered with a reverent hush, "Legend called him the Sainted Physician".

The Time Lady muttered that name under her breath until suddenly the penny dropped. She leaned back in her chair with a broad grin on her face, "Doctor", she chuckled, "who else".

"You know this man?" Griphook asked, "no Goblin saw him before nor has seen him since he disappeared in his magical box. This man has entered Goblin fokelore for his generosity and kindness".

"That man is my best friend", Romana said as she leaned forward again, "and for a time I was also his leader, not that he actually followed by orders but that's a story for another day", she added with a resigned snort.

"Then you too are from the stars", Griphook replied with a reverent tone, "whatever you need my Lady, it shall be yours but please do not summon the Shadow Proclamation".

Romana smiled warmly at the Goblin, "Continue with the peace the Doctor negotiated and you we won't have any problems". She stood up from her seat, "Rest up Griphook, we will return you to the Goblin Nation later today". She placed the sword carefully back in the corner of the room before called out to the two wizards, "Come along you two, let's leave Griphook in peace".

Reluctantly Harry and Ron followed after the Time Lady, eventually congregating on the landing outside, "What was that all about?" Harry asked, "Alien Goblins, your Doctor friend? How is this possibility going to get us into the Lestrange vault".

"Oh Harry, you think outside the box so often that you sometimes forget to look inside that box", Romana replied with a gentle chuckle.

"Now you're speaking in riddles, brilliant just what we need", Ron snorted, "and when were you going to tell us that Goblins are actually aliens?"

"I forgot about it until Luna jogged my memory", Romana shrugged, drawing a glare from the wizards, "oh don't look at me like that, I've got four hundred years of information up here", she pointed at her head, "forgive me for forgetting the odd thing once in a while".

Harry stepped between the alien woman and Ron, "Alright enough you two, I guess your bickering wasn't unique to Hermione and Ron". Ron backed away looking a little embarrassed whereas Romana just stared coolly at the dark haired wizard, "Tell us your plan then Romana".

"Simple, we walk into Gringott and ask for the Horcrux", she shrugged.

The boys stood passively and waited for her to continue but it soon became apparent that this was the extent of her plan, "And you criticised our plan", Harry snorted.

"It's not as daft as it sounds", Romana began, "technically the Goblins are inhabiting this planet illegally, one call to the Shadow Proclamation and they'll be served with an eviction notice".

"You keep mentioning the Shadow Proclamation like we're supposed to know who they are", Ron grumbled, "care to enlighten us?"

"Now you know what it's like for us when you bring up a wizarding thing", Romana shot back. A quick warning glare from Harry soon silenced her complaint, "Think of the Shadow Proclamation like an intergalactic Police force. One call to them will bring the full might of the law down on them".

Ron nodded in acknowledgement but Harry though didn't look too convinced, "The Goblins aren't known for playing nice, what if they don't listen to reason?"

Romana paused, she hadn't actually considered that the Goblins wouldn't be reasonable. She had seen Griphook react in horror to the threat of the Shadow Proclamation, it stood to reason that the other Goblins wouldn't react in the same way, "Then I'll ask a little bit nicer", she attempted to reassure the wizards, "now I'd better get back to my TARDIS, who knows what Luna's done to my ship". She galloped down the stairs, hoping that the blonde hasn't blown a hole in the universe in the few minutes that she had been left alone.

 _ **A/N –**_ _Goblins are aliens, dunno where in my head that came from. I continue to be overwhelmed by the popularity of this story so thank you for everyone who's followed it so far or added it to their favourites. A couple of common questions keep coming up in reviews so I'll address those now:_

 _Will the Doctor feature in this story? – Yes but probably not under the final battle is done. I want to establish Romana as someone who can "be the Doctor", for want of a better term. As to which Time Lord will show up...you'll have to carry on reading._

 _Will xxx be Romana's companion? – Short answer is I haven't decided what to do after the final battle is done. My original plan was to end it there but the popularity of the story is making me think again. Keep sending the good vibes and the more I'll I suppose but I'm open to any companion/pairing right now._


	6. Gringotts

_Chapter 6 – Gringotts_

Fortunately for Romana and the universe as a whole, Luna hadn't found a way to fracture the space time continuum. When she heard about the Time Lady's plan, the blonde Ravenclaw did want to come along for the journey. Romana though had refused the request, Luna had been imprisoned in Malfoy Manor for many months and needed as much rest as possible. The alien woman did feel bad for rejecting Luna, the sad watery eyes of teen didn't help either. Impulsively Romana promised her a trip in the TARDIS one day, once the war was over.

Almost the moment Luna left the time capsule, Romana mentally cursed herself. She wasn't even sure what she wanted to do after this war was over. Offering out trips across the universe was the Doctor's thing, not hers. On top of that Harry and Ron, mostly the red head in truth, had been hostile towards the Time Lady. Harry appeared to be warming up to her presence but she doubted that Ron ever would. She couldn't blame the youngest Weasley boy, Hermione had been the love of his life and now she was gone, replaced by a four hundred year old alien who couldn't even do magic anymore.

Romana picked up the wand formerly belonging to Draco Malfoy, twisting it idly between her fingers. She still hadn't told the boys that she didn't have magic anymore. The Time Lady had tried to replicate the effects of a wand firstly using her blaster and then the sonic screwdriver. She could duplicate the energy output but not the effects. It led her to believe that the ability to perform magic wasn't just down to the manipulation of energy. Witches and wizards must have some kind of genetic mutation that allowed them to perform their mystical feats.

Placing the wand down and picking up the other one on the work bench, Romana resisted the urge to snap it in half. The Time Lady couldn't access magic but even she could feel the malevolent energy pouring off the wooden stick formerly belonging to Bellatrix Lestrange. Fortunately she was saved by the opening of the TARDIS door, "Alright, we're ready", Harry said, leading Ron into the time capsule, "for the record I'm still really uncomfortable with this plan".

"Walking into the middle of Diagon Alley will probably have that affect on you", Romana smiled in an attempt to reassure the young wizard.

"So we're not even going to disguise ourselves in any way?" Ron asked in disbelief, "just stroll down the Alley without a care in the world?"

"I was planning on parking us outside", Romana sniffed, a little frustrated with Ron's constant questioning, "it will made negotiating with the Goblins much easier if we're not in disguise", she continued, "would you trust someone who had to hide their identity?" Ron remained stoically silent but the tips of his ears burned red, a sure sign that he wasn't happy, "Talking of Goblins, where is Griphook?"

"Not coming", Harry grumbled bitterly, "when we went to collect him, he tried to take the Sword of Gryffindor away from us". The dark haired wizard pulled up his sleeve to reveal a couple of fresh and angry looking scratch marks, "Look what the little bugger did to me", he complained. Romana shook her head, the Goblin was an integral back of her plan. She would return the Goblin to his people as a sign of good faith. Without Griphook she would have to resort to a backup plan that would be a little trickier to execute. It still beat stealing what they wanted from the vault though.

She pulled down on the flight control lever to set her capsule in flight. The short hop across the country gave her an opportunity to mend some fences. Underneath the console was several storage cupboards that the Time Lady began to rummage through, "Now where did I put it", she muttered to herself before her hand settled on a small grey tube.

Removing the cap she gave the tube a little squeeze, trying not to be repulsed by the terrible smell from the grey paste inside, "Blimey, what the bloody hell is that stuff?" Ron must've caught a whiff of the paste. His eyes began to water and he firmly clamped his nose shut with his finger.

"Healing salve, made from the swamp waters of Caledona Major", the Time Lady responded, "not the prettiest smelling thing in the world but it'll heal up those cuts quickly". Harry looked hesitant to take some of the salve and not for the first time, Romana regretted losing the beaded bag that her human counterpart carried around. "Oh don't be such a big baby", the Time Lady finally ran out of patience with the reluctance of Harry. She squeeze out a small blob, grabbed Harry's arm and began to rub the grey substance into his skin, "The smell fades once it comes in contact with the skin, just in case you're worried about frightening away the girls".

"I was more worried about offending the Goblins", Harry snorted in response. To his surprise though the scratches were healing and the redness fading, "Wow, that's not bad", he commented, inspecting his almost flawless arm".

"Keep it", Romana offered the tube, "I can always pop over and get some more if needed". Suddenly the TARDIS lurched, not violently but enough to throw the trio off balance, "That doesn't feel right", the Time Lady commented and hurried up to the console. Checking the scanner, it seemed that her ship was having trouble locating Diagon Alley, "Of course, technically the Alley exists in a pocket dimension so the scanner can't automatically lock onto its location", she slapped a hand against her forehead.

Ron walked slowly towards the console, looking nervous of all the strange levers and switches, "Problems?" he asked.

"Not really but it's going to need some team work to land", she pointed towards the control panel directly opposite her current position, "Harry, see the yellow and blue levers", the wizard nodded in confirmation, "I need you to pull all of them down". Once Harry did this, Romana's fingers whirred over her panel like a pianist, "Ron, when I say pull down on the main lever there", she pointed out the flight control.

Romana watched as the wizard moved gingerly towards the panel, looking genuinely afraid of the lever, "Ron its fine I trust you", the Time Lady attempted to reassure the red head, "there's no one I would trust more in a tight spot". She flashed him a warm smile but the teen still looked apprehensive, "Come on Ronald, where's that Gryffindor spirit", she teased just as the console made a loud buzzing sound, "pull it", she instructed.

Almost instantly Ron seized the lever and pulled it down with all his might. The sight of the wizard casting aside his nerves filled the Time Lady with pride. Ron was always lacking in confidence but always came through in the end. The time rotor slowed down until it came to a gentle stop, "There we go, crisis adverted". She grabbed her red coat that was hanging on one of the supports nearby, "I honestly don't know why the Doctor made flying a TARDIS look so difficult".

"Romana", Ron began softly, "if I hadn't pulled that switch, what would've happened".

The Time Lady shrugged her arms into the sleeves of her coat before answering, "Do you know what a pasta maker is Ron?" The red head shook his head, "Really? Well that ruins my analogy because I would've described us as the pasta". As she walked past the two wizards Ron continued to look confused by Harry had gone as white as a sheet. He knew exactly what a pasta machine was and understood Romana perfectly.

Romana was relieved to see the door of Gringotts directly in front of them and even more relieved to see that the chameleon circuit of her TARDIS worked perfectly. It had shifted its shape to perfectly match the marble columns that stood in front of the bank, "Ah so you can do it then?" she patted the column, "I was beginning to wonder". If the teen wizards were alarmed by the sudden shift in shape of the TARDIS they didn't show it on their faces. They were more concerned about getting inside the bank before anyone saw them.

The great doors to Gringotts opened and the trio stepped inside. The Goblin tellers that lined the entrance hall didn't even look up, they were too focused on their work, "This is your plan Romana", Ron whispered, "we'll let you speak first".

"Too kind", Romana snarked and approached the nearest Goblin, "I wish to speak with the most senior Goblin available", she said firmly.

The Goblin behind the counter barely looked up at the brunette, "Ragnok does not waste his time on witches like you", he snorted, barely hiding his disdain for Romana. The Goblin returned to his ledger, scribbling away like nothing had happened.

"Not entirely unexpected", Harry grumbled under his breath, "have another go", he encouraged the Time Lady.

Romana wondered why she had been designated spokeswoman, just because it was her plan didn't mean that the Goblins would listen to her. Remembering that she had been in charge of an entire planet, commanding Time Lords significantly older and more experienced than her. Channelling her third incarnation, the War Queen of Gallifrey, she straightened herself up and stared down the same Goblin, "I seek parlay with the Goblins of Goblynia", her voice boomed, "under the terms of the Eranian Agreement of the Shadow Proclamation".

Silence descended on the dozen or so Goblins in the hall, the cold words of the Time Lady seemed to lower the very temperature of the room. The Goblin that had previously ignored Romana suddenly stared at her with a mixture of fear and awe, "A-and who should I say seeks an audience?" he stammered.

"Romanadvoratrelundar, representing the Time Lords of Gallifrey", the Time Lady added coolly, using her full name in an attempt to make her sound more important. The mere mention of Gallifrey had the Goblin's whispering amongst themselves and Romana was sure that the Doctor's name was mentioned on a few occasions.

The Goblin jumped down off his chair and scurried away, tripping a couple of times before tumbling through a set of double doors. The teen wizards joined Romana, both of them had a look of shock on their faces, "That was bloody wicked", Ron gasped, "I've never seen a Goblin move so fast before". The Time Lady smirked in triumph, she didn't like throwing the weight of her species around but sometimes it was necessary, "Your people must've been pretty well respected", the red head commented.

"We were", Romana sighed with a hint of sadness, the fate of Gallifrey still unknown to her. The wizards didn't know how to respond to that, instead they waited patiently for the Goblin to return.

Minutes passed before the Goblin returned with another member of his species in close attendance. This Goblin was a little taller than the other and was wearing a red cloak deep red in colour. Like all other Goblins he carried himself with an air of superiority. Romana just knew this was the head Goblin and it was unlikely that he would be dominated so easily, "Welcome Time Lady of Gallifrey", he began, "it had been many years since one of your kind graced these halls. I am Ragnok, King of the Goblins".

Remembered her alien customs class from the Academy Romana bowed deeply, keeping herself bent over as she address Ragnok, "Humble greetings King Ragnok, I am Romana", she began, "I'm sure you know Harry Potter and Ronald Weasley". Harry and Ron followed the Time Lady's example and bowed deeply.

"Indeed I do", Ragnok replied, "please rise", the trio did as instructed, "now I understand you wished to discuss some business with the Goblin Nation".

"We have reason to suspect that an artefact of the darkest nature has been concealed within your vaults", Romana began, "a Horcrux". The mere mention of a Horcrux drew an immediate reaction from the assembled Goblins and not a positive one. The translation circuit of the TARDIS struggled to keep up with the various Gobbleygook curses, "So you know what one is then?" Romana said dryly.

"I do", Ragnok nodded, "however I do not believe I can help you without evidence".

Harry stepped forward slightly and stood next to the Time Lady, "Your Majesty I have reason to believe one of these Horcruxes is hidden inside the Lestrange family vault", he addressed Ragnok.

"The Lestrange vault", Ragnok rubbed his chin. Romana could almost hear his mental cogs whirring, probably wondering how much he could charge to search the Lestrange's vault. "I apologise Lady Romana but I really cannot help you. To access a wizarding family's vault without their consent or evidence of a crime would violate the treaty negotiated by your fellow Time Lord".

"Doctor, why must you make things hard for me", the Time Lady grumbled. If she wasn't so pushed for time she might've attempted to summon the renegade Time Lord. Unfortunately she didn't even know if he survived unleashing the Moment during the final moments of the Time War, "Do you have a copy of this treaty to hand Ragnok", Romana pushed the Goblin, "not that I don't believe you but retrieving that Horcrux is of vital importance".

Ragnok didn't look overly impressed but he granted the Time Lady's request. With a click of his fingers a thick roll of parchment appeared in his hand. Romana carefully closed the gap and accepted the scroll, although the Goblin appeared to be reluctant to let it go. Speed reading through each condition, Romana slowly began to lose hope. It appeared that there wasn't much room for manoeuvre, "Out of interest Ragnok, what did the Doctor look like who created this treaty?"

"Curly blonde hair", Ragnok answered curtly, "horrible taste in clothing, multiple different colours just thrown together".

The Time Lady looked up from the parchment, "That Doctor negotiated this?" she snorted, "he was more likely to start a war than stop one".

"Hang on what's this", Ron pointed at the treaty, "the Goblin Nation shall not knowingly conceal or attempt to hide a wizard within the vaults of Gringotts". Romana smiled, that was the loophole they needed, "Technically you have a portion of a wizard within one of your vaults".

The King of the Goblins chewed on his wrinkly lip, unhappy with this turn of events, "I shall instruct a team to conduct a cursory external sweep of the Lestrange vault". He immediately held up a hand to stave off any further protests, "I am doing this as a show of goodwill to you Time Lady", he directed that comment at Romana. "I really cannot do anything further without evidence that a Horcrux lay within a vault". He extended an arm towards the door of the bank, "We shall be in contact-".

" _Harry Potter"_ , a high pitched, nasally voice echoed throughout the banking vault, " _I know you are taking refuge inside Gringotts, come out and face me directly Harry and no Goblin shall die today"._ Every Goblin, wizard and Time Lady knew that voice immediately. Lord Voldemort was here and waiting outside the bank.


	7. Panic Attack

_Chapter 7 – Panic Attack_

The entrance lobby of Gringotts was deathly silent as Voldemort's voice reverberated off the high ceilings. His appearance in Diagon Alley wasn't something that Romana had counted on. She knew it was highly likely that the Dark Lord would have some spies staking out the place but she never expected news of their arrival to reach him so quickly. Her plan called for the Goblins to hand over the Horcrux quickly and leave before the Death Eaters could arrive. Maybe on reflection that was too much to hope for and now she had to improvise, something she had never been that great at. The Doctor had a knack of evading any trap, Romana though wasn't as slippery. During her time onboard the Doctor's TARDIS it had become a running joke how often she was captured.

Looking around Gringotts, Romana noticed there weren't too many options available. They could retreat further into the bank but that could risk trapping them inside or worse, earn the wrath of the Goblins. The only other exit was out the main door and entering into direct confrontation with the Death Eaters. Neither looked particularly appealing right now, "Romana, what are we going to do?" Ron whispered.

For the first time since her regeneration Romana was lost for words. In the face of insurmountable odds she was frozen into inaction. There was a slim chance they could slip out the door and into the TARDIS but they still wouldn't have the Horcrux. She couldn't rely on the generosity of the Goblins to deliver the offending item even if they did locate it in the vault. Standing and fighting would almost certainly lead to their demise. Voldemort was unlikely to enter the Alley alone, more than likely he had brought a fair number of his followers with him.

The Time Lady became acutely aware of several pairs of eyes on her, eagerly awaiting her response. As the seconds ticked by and it became apparent that she wasn't acting, the tension in the atmosphere increased. Fortunately Romana was saved by the purposeful voice of Harry beside her, "We'd better see what he wants".

"Mate, are you crazy?" Ron gasped, "he's probably brought his entire army with him".

"I don't see too many other options", Harry replied, "we can't risk him entering the bank, too many lives would be lost". Romana slipped out of her mental funk long enough to notice the surprised looks on the faces of the Goblins. Not too many wizards stood up for the creatures, maybe this noble act could be turned to their advantage. Assuming they lived long enough to continue their negotiation.

Romana was happy to see Harry take the lead out of the bank, content to slip into the supporting role for the next few minutes. Exiting through the heavy doors, Romana's worst fears were confirmed. There must've been two dozen Death Eaters blocking their path down Diagon Alley. Stretching out her time sense, the Time Lady could also feel a dozen more in hidden inside some of the abandoned shops. They were cornered and Romana knew it, "Harry Potter", hissed in delight, "our meeting today is most fortunate".

"I'm glad to be of service" Harry scowled in return, "let's skip the pleasantries Tom and get on with the true reason for your appearance".

From her position beside Harry, Romana could feel the malice rolling off Voldemort. She found it hard to concentrate on the Dark Lord though, his very presence felt wrong. He felt like a fixed point in time stretching out into eternity, yet at the same time he also felt dead. Romana guessed it was a side effect of the Horcruxes, he was dead yet also alive at the same time. She tried to keep her gaze on the monstrosity but it was incredibly hard.

Harry and Voldemort traded jibes for a couple of minutes but strangely the Dark Lord and his followers didn't make a move on the trio or the bank. Voldemort wasn't stupid, he must've had a vague idea why they were here. Clearly he didn't want to risk the wrath of the Goblins in case they looked into his followers vault. This might be something Romana could use to her advantage. It was time to take a leaf out of the Doctor's book and poke this dangerous situation with a stick, "As much as I love this witty banter could we move this along before I die of old age", Romana called out, "and believe me, that'll be an impressive feat".

Romana could feel several pairs of eyes glare in her direction. Instinctively her hand went to the Sonic Blaster positioned on her hip, she might be able to get a few shots off before the Death Eater knew what hit them, "Ah yes, the mudblood who thinks she's an alien", the Dark Lord smirked, much to the amusement of his followers. Romana could clearly pick out the cackling hyena laugh of Bellatrix Lestrange amongst the gathered mass of dark robes, "Tell me, what makes you think you can possibly challenge me?" Voldemort taunted.

Suppressing her urge to vomit at the nausea just being in the presence of Voldemort, Romana returned the Dark Lord's stare intensely, "Hundreds of years of experience", the Time Lady shrugged. She then broke into a small chuckle, "It's funny, you strived for eternal life but believe me, living for centuries isn't all it's cracked up to be". That peaked the interest of the Dark Lord which amused Romana greatly, "Tell me, what do you know of the Time Lords?" she asked the gathered crowd.

"A myth", a scornful voice called out, "a whisper emanating from the Department of Mysteries telling of creatures who controlled time itself".

A small smile crossed Romana's lips, "Not sure if I like being described as a creature but then again you lot class werewolves and Veela as creatures so that shouldn't surprise me". A small murmuring of annoyance travelled through the gathered Death Eaters, "There is something about Time Lords that you might find interesting", Romana addressed Voldemort directly, "did you know that on suffering a fatal injury we can regenerate our bodies".

A cruel grimace flashed across Voldemort face as he waived some of his supporters back, "Romana what are you doing?" Harry whispered, watching carefully as Voldemort inched towards the bank.

"Buying us some time", Romana replied, "when I give the signal, head for the TARDIS".

"But what about the Horcrux?" Ron asked.

"It's not much use to us if we're dead", the Time Lady said carefully, "we'll have to fall back and think of something else". She paused, checking once again that her Blaster was ready to fire, "Maybe the Goblins will have a change of heart". The disbelieving snort from the two teens told its own story that perhaps generosity a little too much to hope for.

A loud cannon like blast brutally interrupted their conversation, "Good that got your attention", Voldemort stated, lowering his wand slowly, "assuming I believe this ludicrous tale of your", he directed that comment towards Romana, "how does someone learn this regeneration process?"

"Ludicrous tale?" Romana snorted, "I find your lack of faith disturbing your Lordship". She chuckled at her joke but no one else was smiling, "That was a Star Wars reference", she continued, "you Purebloods need to get out more". She didn't need to be psychic to feel the anger rolling off the Dark Lord, "Regeneration isn't something you can learn from a book, it's a genetic trait unique to the Time Lords".

"You mock me with your words girl", Voldemort growled.

"Girl? I'm four hundred and thirteen years old", Romana snapped, "I doubt you'll make it that far, even with your magically constructed body", she lowered her voice slightly, "or soul anchors". Voldemort's eyes widened, "By cheating death you've disturbed the natural order of time Thomas", she continued, "as a Time Lady, it's my duty to erase your stain from time".

Voldemort anger reached its peak and Romana instinctively reached for her weapon. Ron and Harry sensed this too, subtly reaching for their wands, "Then you will die, Time Lady", the Dark Lord spat, a nasty curse on the tip of his tongue.

Before Voldemort could act Romana fired her Blaster into the ground near his feet. The sonic blast shattered the stone pavement, sending large fragments of debris into the gathered Death Eaters. She rolled behind a pillar, firing indiscriminately into the sea of black robes, "This plan of yours Romana", Harry shouted over the spell fire, "I'm beginning to think we should've gone with ours instead".

Romana didn't reply but she was thinking the same thing, maybe breaking into Gringotts would've been a better idea than taking on dozens of murderous wizards. The trio were firing into the crowd, stunning spells from the boys and stun bolts from the Time Lady. Suddenly Romana saw an acid green curse flash past her ear and crash into the door of Gringotts. A Death Eater had tried to use the killing curse when her back was turned. Fortunately Harry hit him straight between the eyes with a stunner, sending the wizard tumbling through a nearby shop window.

The curse froze Romana in her tracks, she never thought about the consequences of getting hit with a killing curse. Would the spell trigger regeneration or would it cause actual death for the Time Lady? It began to dawn on her just how reckless this plan was. The colourful bolts from the various wizards began to bring back memories of the Time War, the battle for Arcadia and the constant bombardment of the sky trenches above Gallifrey. For what felt like an eternity Romana had lived under constant threat of death at the hands of the Daleks. This exchange of spell fire brought back horrible memories of the deaths of hundreds of her fellow Time Lords. The physical and mental pain of their psychic presence being extinguished was a horror that Romana could never forget.

Memories of that dark period flooded her senses and Romana could feel her chest tightening. Her breathing became rapid and her hands began to shake. She could feel her hearts thumping away inside her chest, threatening to burst out at any moment. Her breathing became so erratic that her respiratory bypass kicked in, saving her from blacking out in the middle of the Alley. She grasped her hands against the side of her head, begging for everything to stop. The Time Lady let out a silent cry, hoping to be released from her torment.

Romana was enveloped in mental darkness but something was trying to drag her back into the light. She could feel her body moving and someone trying to speak to her. Slowly she opened her eyes and looked into the concerned features of Ron, "You're alright", the red head suddenly pulled her into a tight hug, "I thought I lost you again", he gasped between panicked breaths.

Once Romana regained full uses of her senses, she relaxed into Ron's hug. She might not feel as strongly for the wizard as her human self did but that didn't stop her caring for him deeply. She could also see Harry crouched nearby, a startled look on his face, "We thought the worst when we couldn't see you breathing", the dark haired teen stated, "If you want to talk about something then we're all ears".

"Yeah that was a Time Lord thing", she left terribly embarrassed, panic attacks were something that happened to lesser species. Time Lords had evolved beyond such emotional responses and to breakdown in the middle of Diagon Alley was mortifying, "Thank you for the offer Harry but we've got more important things to worry about".

It then dawned on Romana that neither Harry nor Ron was defending themselves against spell fire. The pair were powerful wizards but not even they could defeat that many Death Eaters. The Time Lady stood up and noticed most of the dark wizards were still there and still firing spells in their direction, only none of them were reaching them. They were all being absorbed by some kind of invisible shield, "Lady Romana", the Time Lady recognised the voice of Ragnok the Goblin, "the Gringotts defences will not hold forever, I suggest that you come back inside". The trio didn't need to be told twice. The teen carefully pulled Romana off the cold floor and led her inside Gringott, leaving a seething Dark Lord silently screaming vengeance on the other side of the shield.

 _ **A/N -** Wow, over 100 followers now and more than 60 favourites. Massive thank you everyone. Romana's panic might seem a little sudden but I don't think she's truly stopped and thought about the horror of the War until forced to by this fight. _

_Next time, Romana comes face to face with her unlikely saviour..._


	8. Evading The Dark Lord

_Chapter 7 – Evading The Dark Lord_

Romana shuffled into Gringotts, lagging behind Harry and Ron by several metres. She could still feel her hands shaking after her panic attack outside the building. The speed which the attack came on terrified the Time Lady and left her wondering if she would be any use to the teens when they got into another fight. If she struggled against a few dark wizards then Romana felt she wouldn't have much chance when the Dark Lord unleashed the might of his army.

The Time Lady hated feeling out of control of her emotions. Her first incarnation had been fairly guarded with her emotions, a consequence of her vast intelligence that placed her far ahead of the other Time Lords at the Academy. The second Romana was different, much more open and expression which was largely thanks to the Doctor's influence. Even after she returned to Gallifrey and assumed the mantle of President she kept hold of the jovial personality that she had cultivated.

The Time War changed everything and her third regeneration was cold and calculating. It wasn't the final days of the War that something changed inside the Time Lady. Rassilon had usurped her from power and imprisoned in the bowels of the Citadel. The dark, lonely days had given Romana time to think and repent for her actions. The Daleks were seen as the evil incarnate but at least they were open about it. The Time Lords under Romana had been just as vicious and many worlds simply ceased to exist, that blood was all on Romana's hands. Maybe having an incarnation that panicked under fire was Romana's punishment and penance.

"The Goblin Nation has conducted a thorough search of the Lestrange vault", Ragnok's voice cut through Romana's dark thoughts. The King of the Goblins clicked his fingers and one of the tellers stepped forward, in his hand was a purple velvet bag, "I believe this is the item you are looking for", Ragnok added.

Romana watched as Harry and Ron looked inside the bag. She didn't need to though, the Time Lady was suddenly overcome by the same sickly feeling she had experienced when in Voldemort's presence. Harry carefully pulled out his wand and Romana could feel the eyes of the Goblin's focused solely on him, "I'm just going to levitate it out from the bag", he stated in an attempt to placate the Goblins. Romana let out a sigh of relief when Ragnok nodded stiffly, inviting him to continue.

Harry muttered the levitation charm and a small golden cup floated out of the bag. Romana spotted a badger engraved onto the surface, confirming that this cup had once belonged to Helga Hufflepuff, "I trust this keeps up our end of the agreement brokered by your fellow Time Lord Lady Romana", Ragnok stated.

The Time Lady turned towards the Goblin leader, swallowing her doubts in the process. It wouldn't do her any favours to show weakness in front of the Goblins, "Your people are truly honourably King Ragnok", she bowed respectfully, "if I encounter the Doctor again I will speak highly of your actions today".

"Now all we need to do is destroy the thing", Ron commented, "good thing we've still got the sword onboard your ship".

Romana nodded slowly, remembering that she had to go back outside and face the Death Eaters. Her immediate concern though was for the Goblins, "The Dark Lord will know that you helped us Ragnok", the Time Lady stated, "I recommend you escort your people to safety".

"I am touched by your concern Lady Romana", Ragnok replied, "the young and the women are already safely inside the catacombs that surround the vaults". The Goblin King smiled with a particularly vicious looking grin, "If they attempt to invade Gringotts, they will encounter some very nasty surprises".

"I see", Romana said curtly, from her studies she knew just how vicious and vindictive Goblins could be when provoked. Suddenly feeling very uncomfortable again, she quickly bowed her head, " _Look after yourself King Ragnok",_ she added in Gobbleygook.

" _May your enemies fall at your feet Lady Romana",_ Ragnok replied before instructed his people to begin retreated deeper into the bank.

With the Horcrux in their possession the trio had no other business inside Gringotts. As they headed towards the doors Ron gazed towards the cup floating in front of Harry, "Not much to look at is it", he commented, "at least Slytherin's locket looked the part, this is just a cup with a badger on it".

"A solid gold cup Ronald", Romana added, trying to restore her internal balance by doing something she was good at , lecturing and reciting information, "gold tarnishes over time but this still looks brand new", she inspected the goblet a little closer, "not bad for something nearly a thousand years old". The Time Lady's hand reached for the brass handle but she paused before pushing it open, "If you think this looks unimpressive, you'd be disappointed when you see the Holy Grail".

"The Holy Grail", Harry gasped, "you mean you've actually seen it?"

"Seen it, I've drunk out of it", Romana smirked in response, "which reminds me, if I ever see the Doctor again I really must ask him if he returned it to that Jesus bloke". She shrugged her shoulders slightly, "He kept calling him a very naughty boy though. No idea why, something to do with pythons apparently".

The Time Lady shook her head, shaking off her memories and gingerly opened the door. She forgot to ask the Goblins if their force field was still active. Nervously she peeked outside and was relieved to see that the Death Eaters were still safely contained behind the invisible shield, "I think the coast is clear but let's not hang around", she commented and led the two teens into the Alley.

The Death Eaters had given up trying to blast their way in and were prowling around the entrance of Gringotts. Voldemort himself looked especially murderous but not as angry as he was the moment he spotted Hufflepuff's cup. The force field blocked out the noise but Romana imagined the inhuman scream coming from the Dark Lord's lip, "Blimey I think we've pissed him off", Ron said in his typical understated fashion.

A sudden flash of inspiration shot across Romana's brain, maybe they should destroy the cup now before entering the TARDIS. She wasn't too sure how the time ship would react to having a fragment of human onboard, it could confuse the door locking mechanism and leave them stranded. Her idea would only infuriate the Dark Lord further and paint a huge target on her back. Maybe it was the reckless Gryffindor spirit of her human self overcoming the nerves of her Time Lady because before she had a chance to stop herself, she called over to Harry, "Force the cup towards the gathered Death Eaters".

"Can I ask why?" Harry replied, "aren't we supposed to be destroying these things, not giving them back".

"Just do it", she barked, unholstering her Sonic Blaster and turning it up to the highest setting. Harry did as he was instructed and put a little more power behind his levitation charm. The cup shot in front of Romana and she fired a round with deadly accuracy. The cup disintegrated with shower of broken gold and plasma. For a moment Voldemort was stunned until his eyes flashed red. Pure magic began to pour from his wand and Romana could feel the force field buckling under his immense power and strength.

Once again Romana found herself rooted to the spot, fearful of the coming assault. What if she had led Harry and Ron to their deaths, would she freeze again under pressure? Those questions were pushed out of her head when she heard Harry scream in pain. He collapsed to the ground, clutching his forehead around the region of his scar, "I think Voldemort's angry", Ron commented.

"You think", Harry spat out through gritted teeth, "it feels like my head's going to explode".

The suffering of her friend jolted Romana into action, "Quickly get him inside", she flashed her sonic screwdriver towards her disguised TARDIS which turned back into the red phone box that Romana was beginning to like. It took the combined effort of the Time Lady and Ron to drag Harry's dead weight into the time ship. Romana left the dark haired teen near the entrance and bounded over towards the console, throwing the ship into flight.

The gentle hum of the Time Rotor did little to calm Romana's fears as the ship sunk into the Vortex. Fortunately the distance between Harry and Voldemort seemed to ease his headache and he managed to sit himself up, "I know where to find another Horcrux", he gasped between breathes, "it's at Hogwarts, inside the Room of Requirement".

Romana nodded absently, unsurprised that Voldemort would hide a piece of his soul inside the school. Without telling the teens, she began to scan the time stream around Hogwarts for an appropriate landing spot. Now that Voldemort was aware they were hunting Horcruxes, there seemed to be a change to time itself. To her it felt like everything was contracting towards a certain point, maybe even a fixed point but she hadn't been able to establish when that was, "Why aren't you using a wand?" Harry's sudden question surprised Romana, "I know yours was taken by the snatchers but surely one of the spare ones we acquired will work for you".

The Time Lady had been dreading this question, would the boys consider her useless to their quest without magic? There hadn't been a right time to tell them before now but maybe this was the moment, "Yes, about that", she began but before she could continue, the ship violently lurched, "oh not again", she cursed the ship.

The wizards were quickly on their feet, gathering around the console, "Do you need me to pull that lever again?" Ron asked, sounding a little too eager to use a piece of technology.

"That's very kind of you Ron but we're not out of control this time", Romana pulled a monitor towards her and began to scan the readouts. Suddenly she noticed something on the screen and her hearts skipped a beat, "No, surely not", she gasped and began to frantically push buttons on the console, "my magnificent ship has located another TARDIS".

There was silence in the console room, punctuated by Harry's voice, "Could it be your Doctor friend?"

"I'm not sure", Romana replied, "if it is then he's not on Earth". She checked the co-ordinates on the screen, "Polis Gratis, sometime during the twenty fourth century". Romana knew that planet, inhabited only by the indigenous species of the world, it was a lonely backwater planet that the Time Lords never visited. Even during the human colonisation of this quadrant of the galaxy, the planet was largely left alone. This didn't seem like a planet the Doctor would visit under normal circumstance, then again with his piloting skills he rarely arrived where he wanted to. "How would you do like to visit your first alien world?" she asked with a sense of mischief. Maybe this quiet planet would be the perfect place to regain her equilibrium.

Harry and Ron glanced at each other with a mixture of excitement and nervousness, "What about the other Horcruxes?" Ron asked, "surely we should head to Hogwarts now?"

Romana sensed the underlying tone in his voice, he was desperate to get to the school to check on Ginny and the rest of his family. Hermione realised pretty early that was Ron's motivation for this hunt, to protect his family from Voldemort and that memory was still held deep within Romana's mind. "Ron we're in a time machine", she reminded the red head, "we could be gone for a year and still return moments after we left".

Ron didn't look overly convinced but bowed to Romana's knowledge on the subject of time travel. The TARDIS locked onto the co-ordinates of its sister ship and quietly landed on the planet Polis Gratis, "Well, shall we take a look", Romana smiled, turning on the spot and allowing her red coat to billow behind her.

Polis Gratis lived up to its isolated reputation, the TARDIS had landed in the middle of a dense forest and the Time Lady could sense nothing for miles. That was concerning though, she should've been able to feel the other TARDIS in the area, "Stay close to me", the Time Lady said gravely to her human companions, "and watch your step". She reached for her Sonic Blaster but didn't pull it from its holster.

Romana took a quick look around, trying to feel any Time Lord presence in the vicinity. There was the chance that the TARDIS detected had crashed here during the Time War. It wasn't uncommon for Battle TARDIS's to get ejected from the vortex and crash into a random part of the universe. If that was the case it was unlikely that its owner was alive, unless they had the good fortune to turn up moments after the crash.

As the group moving deeper into the forest, Romana had the feeling that someone or something was watching her. Using some of her psychic ability she tried to reach out for any brain activity in the area but found nothing. It could be some of the local occupants, their brain activity was too low to be picked up by her superior Time Lord mind, "Something's here", Harry commented from just over Romana's shoulder.

Before Romana could reply, a large group of grey skinned creature leapt out from the trees. It didn't take the Time Lady long to notice they were surrounded, "Wait a second", Ron began, "these things look like House Elves".

The creatures had the same bat like ears and skinny physique associated with the magical beasts but that's where the similarities stopped. Unlike House Elves these creature were easily the same size as the trio and came armed with spears, "I've never met a House Elf that wanted to skewer me before Ronald", Romana commented snippily.

"Ah I thought I recognised that condescending tone", a female voice called out through the gloom, "the voice may change but that superiority complex still shines through Lady President". The tone of address stunned Romana, the fact this woman knew she was President of Gallifrey singled her out as a fellow Time Lady. The irritation in her voice narrowed down the list of possible candidates to just one.

From the trees stepped a woman who could pass for late thirties in human years. Her dark brown hair was pulled back into a tight braid that sat in the middle of her back. She was dressed in a pair of dark red leather trousers that were tucked into some heeled black boots. Underneath her thigh length black jacket was a well fitted white blouse. The face might change but the cold eyes instantly gave away the identity of this Time Lady, "Rani", she grumbled, "I should've known, this planet has your stench all over it".

"I'd watch your tone Romana", the Rani replied slowly, "you find yourself at my mercy". Romana reluctantly agreed with the renegade Time Lady and slowly raised her hands, a gesture that Harry and Ron mirrored, "You should be grateful", the Rani continued, "after all, I did save you rescue you from Gallifrey". Romana muttered something under her breath, trust her to own the Rani a debt and the rogue Time Lady was just the type to want payment.

 _ **A/N -** And there were two Time Ladies. I'm imagining this incarnation of the Rani as Lara Pulver (you may remember her from such Stephen Moffat's shows as Irene Adler in Sherlock)_


	9. The President & The Queen

_Chapter 9 – The President & The Queen_

Romana's hands twitched as the Rani's intense gaze fell upon her. She had an interesting relationship with the renegade Time Lady. During her time as President Romana was largely willing to allow her to go about her business, as long as it didn't interfere with the time stream too much. She was well aware of the Rani's questionable reputation but having a planet full of people to look after meant that she couldn't divert resources to track her down. The Rani tended to keep to herself and avoided getting involved in the elaborate schemes for domination like her fellow renegade the Master.

Like most residents of Gallifrey the Time War changed both Time Lady's. Romana's more ruthless wartime incarnation relied heavily on the Rani to invent some exotic weapons of destruction to use against the Daleks. It helped that the Rani's wartime regeneration was more than willing to serve her home planet than previous incarnations would've been. This regeneration though was a mystery to Romana and she had to tread carefully, "Surely we can talk about this like civilised people Rani", the brunette began, "we're not here to interfere with your experiments".

There was a nervous silence as Romana waited for the Rani's response. Appealing to the renegade's desire to protect her experiments was probably the best course of action, the Rani valued those about everything else, not matter her incarnation. To her immense relief, the Rani slowly waived her hand, "At ease Malachi", she said in the direction of the tallest creature, "these visitors have no ill intensions towards your clan".

The grey skinned creature snorted before sniffing Harry curiously. To his credit the dark haired teen stayed perfectly still, allow the beast to ascertain his intensions. The creature slowly backed away before bowing gently as a show of respect. The gathered locals slowly disappeared back into the forest but Romana could sense they weren't too far away, "I see you found a way to restore your memories", the Rani began with a small smirk, "I trust you didn't spend too long as a human".

"Nearly eighteen years", Romana shot back, "thanks to someone setting the arch for youth rather than adult".

The Rani shrugged, "What makes you think I did it deliberately?"

"Well if you didn't then you got the calculations wrong", Romana smiled broadly, claiming this little exchange as a small victory. The miffed expression on the older Time Lady's face filled Romana with glee.

"Erm hi, remember us?" Ron interjected himself into the Time Lady's conversation, "perhaps some introductions are in order".

"Surrounding yourself with humans, how the mighty have fallen Lady President", the Rani chuckled. She turned towards the humans and ignored Romana's annoyed expression, "I am the Rani, a better example of how a Time Lady is expected to act".

"If by that you mean totally amoral scientist with a superiority complex the size of Jupiter", Romana fired back.

The two humans looked slightly nervous and began to back away from the dark haired Time Lady, "Please if I wanted to kill you, I would've done it the moment you stepped onto the planet", the Rani sniffed, "beside I've cut back a little on the experiments if you must know".

"I'll believe that when I see it", Romana countered, crossing her arms across her chest, "perhaps the two of you should return to the TARDIS, just in case our host changes her mind".

"If she's dangerous then we're staying", Ron replied defiantly, filling Romana's hearts with happiness, "especially if you haven't got a wand to defend yourself with".

"Oh we can't use magic", the Rani said absently, staring at her painted fingernails. Ron and Harry's heads snapped towards Romana as the younger Time Lady glared at the Rani in annoyance, "You didn't know, oops", she practically chuckled at Romana's misfortune.

Romana could feel the humans gaze firmly on her. Picking up on their emotions the pair felt more disappointed than angry, which in some aspects was probably worse. Romana could deal with an angry Harry and Ron, her human self had done that on many occasion. Disappointment though was something entirely different, "Why didn't you tell us?" the Time Lady winced as the hurt in Harry's voice, "didn't you trust us?"

"That's not it at all", Romana replied quickly.

"Then what is it", Ron added heatedly, "I'm getting sick of these little surprises you keep springing on us Romana. I can't speak for Harry but I would like the whole story for once".

The brunette Time Lady nodded slowly and wondered exactly where to begin. This would be a difficult conversation at the best of times but having to conduct it in the presence of the Rani made it ten times more difficult, "Ooh trouble in paradise", the older Time Lady chuckled gleefully, "there's something about human emotion that fascinates me".

"Rani shut up", Romana hissed, ignoring the elated feeling rolling off the dark haired Time Lady. She took a couple of moments before beginning her explanation, "I knew that I couldn't do magic almost from the very beginning. There was so much other stuff going on that I didn't want to worry you", Harry and Ron didn't look overly impressed, "none of the wands onboard the TARDIS would respond to me", she continued, "if I'm honest I was ashamed and I felt like a failure". She sighed deeply and stared at the ground, "I thought that you would find me useless without magic".

Romana tried to block out everything in the surrounding area, she couldn't deal with a gloating Rani or any more disappointment from the two teens. She stood on the spot almost drowning in her failures, the panic attack in Diagon Alley and now deceiving her only friends. To her surprise a firm pair of hands grabbed her by the shoulders forcing her to look up, directly into the vivid green eyes of Harry, "Romana, how can you believe you're useless", he soothed, "without you, neither of us would've escaped from Malfoy Manor".

"We probably would've been caught by the Goblins and executed for breaking into Gringotts", Ron added, "and you have a bloody machine that travels in time and space". There was a soft snort from the Rani that the trio decided to ignore, "Maybe we have been a little hard on you but we're still trying to get our heads around this, I mean our best friend is a really old alien with a time machine".

The brunette smiled warmly, her hearts warmed by the loyalty shown by Hermione's friends. She was so wrapped up in her own thoughts that she had forgotten how hard this was on Harry and Ron, "No matter what, you're still our friend", Harry continued, "but we would like a little more openness though".

The moment was ruined by a retching noise from the other Time Lady, "Please no more, this is far too sickly sweet for my tastes", the Rani sniffed.

"Well no one asked you", Ron snapped, "where does she fit into your story then Romana?"

"I'm sorry to say that she was the one who smuggled me off Gallifrey at the end of the Time War", Romana replied. The memories of that day were still fresh in her mind, locked up like a common criminal in the bowels of the Citadel after being overthrown by Rassilon and his minions. Sometimes she could still feel the foundations of the great structure shaking under heavy assault from the Dalek fleet when she closed her eyes.

"I prefer the term rescued", the Rani continued the story, "our people, in a moment of stupidity or possibly insanity revived one of the founders of our civilisation in hope that he could end the war". Romana was surprised when the Rani paused, for a moment she felt a twinge of regret through the Time Lord telepathic connection, "I'm ashamed to say that I was one of those who voted in favour of this action", there was a pause before she added, "I was wrong".

A small part of Romana wanted to rub this in the Rani's face but the renegade Time Lady rarely admitted she was wrong about anything. To gloat in her face now didn't feel right, "I'm surprised that Rassilon didn't discover your plot", Romana asked her fellow Time Lady, "his telepathic abilities far exceeded any Time Lord in existence".

Once again the Rani hesitated before slowly unbuttoning her blouse. Romana was about to ask her what she was doing but her attention quickly focused on three angry red scars that stretched across the Rani's torso, "Who said that he didn't discover my plan", the older Time Lady said with a small voice. Romana couldn't think of anything to say, feeling nothing but sympathy for the Rani, "I don't want your pity Lady President", the dark haired woman snapped and quickly closed her shirt.

"Then just tell me why?" Romana pleaded, "why did you save me?

"Why not?" the Rani shrugged, "what better way to get back at Rassilon than releasing his biggest opponent from prison?" The Rani hesitated again before continuing her story, "He was planning the Final Sanction, did you know that?"

Romana froze she had read about the Final Sanction in the Academy's library, the total collapse of the time vortex which, in theory, would allow the Time Lords to ascend to a higher level of consciousness. It was purely a theory though, no one would ever be crazy enough to go ahead with the Final Sanction, at least that's what Romana thought, "Do we want to know what this Final Sanction is?" Harry asked nervously.

"The end of everything Harry", Romana replied with a quiet voice, "that's all you need to know".

"Fortunately for us Rassilon's master plan called for Gallifrey to escape the Time Lock and appear in orbit near Earth", the Rani continued her story. "Rassilon was so focused on his moment of triumph that he forgot about me. I grabbed Romana from prison and we escaped to Earth in her TARDIS".

"But I was dying", Romana took over the story, "Rassilon's treatment of me whilst in prison", she paused, trying desperately to push away the dark memories of that time, "let's just say it made Azkaban look like a holiday camp". The two wizards shuddered just at that thought, "The Rani used the Chameleon Arch as I was regenerating to hide me from Rassilon, although quite why you turned me into a baby is beyond me".

The Rani merely shrugged, "Because it amused me", Romana fumed at the older Time Lady, she had been forced to grow up as a human because the Rani thought it would be funny, "I found a childless couple in London who took you in".

"Did they willingly take me in?" Romana asked the Rani, knowing her penchant for mind alerting drugs and poisons. The non committal shrug from the dark haired woman told its own story, "Actually I'm not sure I want to know", she sighed.

One thing that did confuse Romana was the memory of the destruction of Gallifrey, if she had left before this event why could she remember it? "A event like the destruction of Gallifrey, something like that is burned onto the very psyche of every Time Lord and Lady still alive", came the Rani reply to Romana's mental question.

"Were you there?" Romana asked, "is the memory yours that I'm feeling?"

The Rani shook her head, "By the time I returned from dropping baby you off with your new parents the time lock had broken and Gallifrey was returning to its original point in time. I barely had time to summon my TARDIS and run". The older Time Lady paused, "There's only two others that I know survived the war, the Master", Romana groaned, of course that psychopath survived, he was harder to kill than a cockroach. Romana and the High Council had already tried once, executing him for crimes against time itself. Somehow he had escaped death, only to tumble into the Eye of Harmony inside the Eighth Doctor's TARDIS. Even this wasn't enough to get rid of him, he had been brought back to life at the start of the Time War, a decision that Romana had opposed but had been outvoted on. The coward had run away though, saving his own skin and proving Romana right.

That brought Romana's mind on to the second survivor, a small slither of hope filling her body, "The other one, it's the Doctor isn't it?" she asked.

"Unfortunately yes", the Rani groaned. The animosity between the Rani and the Doctor was legendary. They still fought together during the War, more out of pragmatism than genuine respect for each other.

"That's a good thing right?" Harry asked the two Time Lady's, "Romana's told us how brilliant he is".

"The Doctor brilliant?" the Rani suddenly burst into laughter and Romana shot the older woman with a piercing glare. The Doctor wasn't everyone's cup of tea but he was still one of her oldest and best friends. No one insulted the man in her presence, "Oh yes, I forgot that the two of you had a thing for a while, his fourth and your second if I remember correctly", the Rani continued.

Romana could feel Harry and Ron's eyes on her, especially the youngest Weasley son. His feelings towards her human self weren't a secret and he probably didn't want to hear about her previous relationships, "That was a long time ago", the brunette tried to move the conversation along, "whilst I understand you'll never be the best of friends, surely he would appreciate the fact that you're alive".

"I have no need for company", the Rani quickly dismissed Romana, "especially not from that bumbling idiot".

"Rani, how long have you been alone for?" Romana was surprised to hear that question from Harry. For her the Time War was fairly recent, even counting her eighteen or so years as a human. It never once crossed her mind that it had been any longer than that since that fateful day.

For a few moments the Rani hesitated to answer and Romana could feel her hesitancy. There was one other emotion rolling off the renegade, near crippling loneliness. If Romana had to guess, the Rani had been free of the war for one or maybe even two hundred years, "I like my solitude Harry Potter and little wizards like you should mind their own business", the Rani snapped.

Silence descended on the forest again and no human or Time Lady dared to break the silence. Romana knew that the Rani liked to work alone, the council often went decades without hearing from her. Living with the knowledge that she was one of the last Time Lords in existence was painful for Romana but to live with that for hundreds of years like the Rani had, the brunette couldn't imagine anything worse. Then there was the Doctor, if he hadn't encountered the Master then he probably thought he was alone. Romana vowed to track him down as soon as she could, once this business with Voldemort was out the way.

"How did you know who Harry was?" Ron's question suddenly pierced through the silent, "you introduced yourself but never took our names".

Romana froze because Ron was absolutely correct, that brought another important question to mind, "How did you know about magic on Earth Rani?" she asked, "You must've had a fair idea to create a magical human persona for me".

The Rani crossed her arms defensively across her body and for once, Romana noticed that the renegade was lost for words, "Surely that's not relevant", the Time Lady answered. Romana though stood her ground, returning the Rani's glare, "Fine but I'm not doing this whilst standing in the middle of a forest". She turned on her heel and marched back towards the trees, "Try to keep up, there's some dangerous creatures in this forest", she called over her shoulder.

Harry, Ron and Romana looked at each other before the Time Lady followed after the Rani, "There better not be any spiders", Ron snorted. Romana had to chuckle, they were being led into a dark forest by a dangerous renegade Time Lady. A few spiders were the least of their concerns.


	10. Ancient History

_Chapter 10 – Ancient History  
_

The walk through the forest had been largely silent, only punctuated by the occasional cry of the native wildlife. The Rani led the way, half stomping half marching towards their location. Romana had to walk briskly to keep up with the older Time Lady, her thoughts churning with every step. The Rani knew far too much about the wizarding world for her liking and it wouldn't surprise her if the dark haired woman had interfered at some point in the past. The former President of Gallifrey kept thinking about the grey skinned creatures who had welcomed them to the planet. They gave her a horrible feeling and not just because of their looks.

The group eventually reached a rather primitive looking hut, a wooden structure held together with mud and rope. As far as Romana could see it was the only solid structure anywhere in the forest, "Not much to look at", Ron sniffed from his position next to the Time Lady.

"I don't know", Harry shrugged, "it reminds me a little bit of Hagrid's place". Romana nodded in agreement, apart from its normal size the half giant would look very at home in the hut, "not somewhere I'd expect to find a Time Lady though", he continued.

"Humans, still as brainless as I remember", the Rani scoffed and entered the hut without another word.

"The hut's just a disguise", Romana explained to the two humans, "this is the TARDIS we've been looking for, the hut is just the chameleon circuit helping it blend in".

Romana stepped towards the door and gently pushed it open. Just as she suspected the Time Lady walked into the console room of the Rani's TARDIS. The walls of the time ship were cold and grey although a few pink and red lights offered a break from the clinical feel. Dotted around the familiar hexagonal console were various pedestals with numerous jars placed on top. She instantly recognised a Tyrannosaurus embryo inside one of the jars, "Still fascinated by dinosaurs I see Rani", Romana commented.

"A species taken before they were ready", the renegade commented. She was standing next to the console with her arms folded tightly against her chest, "Just like some of my specimens really, perhaps one day I shall restore them to their full glory".

Romana remained tight lipped, that was exactly what she was afraid of, "Is this the same embryo you had before the Time War?" she asked to quickly divert the Rani's attention, "It must've been stewing away in this brine for a long time".

"It's perfectly fine", the Rani snorted, insulted at Romana's insinuation, "my preservation fluid can keep it in stasis for centuries without any loss of genetic material".

The centuries comment surprised Romana slightly. She knew that the Rani was much older than her, roughly the same age as the Doctor but Romana knew that the older Time Lady hadn't acquired the T-Rex embryo until a few decades before the War. There had been a small controversy when the Council heard that the renegade had stolen the egg of the dinosaur. When summoned back to Gallifrey, the Rani successfully argued that since she had stolen the egg from a species at a point in time just before extinction, she hadn't actually disrupted the timeline. It was a technicality but the High Council had no choice but to let her off.

Shortly after that Romana knew the Rani had encountered the Sixth Doctor and renewed their old rivalry. That had been just before the early skirmishes of the War so the embryo had been stored since that time, "I'll ask again Rani, how long have you been alone?" Romana asked a little more forcefully this time.

Before the Rani could answer Harry and Ron tumbled into the TARDIS. Despite the wizarding world having 'bigger on the inside' magic, Romana still had to smile at the awe on their faces at the sight of a time capsule. Almost immediately the red head's attention focused on one of the jars, "Bloody hell", he swore, "she's got one of those brains from the Department of Mysteries".

Romana turned her attention to the floating pink brain inside a jar. It did bear a striking resemblance to the things that had attacked Ron inside the Department of Mysteries. The dangling appendages flicked periodically and Ron nervously rubbed his arms in the spot where his faded scars were, "Curious species the Zlatan's", the Rani began, moving towards the jar, "of all the humanoid species in the universe, they have the largest brains". A cruel smile flashed across her face, "This one really didn't want his brain removed, I probably should've stunned him first but that would've damaged the tissue".

"Rani", Romana hissed dangerously, "that's not the point Ron's trying to make", she really didn't want to hear how the Rani plucked the brain out of a living creature explained in great detail.

"You spoil all my fun", the Rani sniffed and carefully stroked the jar, "reminds me a bit of Morbius, after the dramatic weight loss of course".

The Rani chuckled dryly and Romana pinched the bridge of her nose, "The brain in the jar, is it the same as the one's Ron is talking about?" she snapped, talking with the Rani was really giving her a headache.

"Never heard of the Department of Mysteries", the Rani began without making eye contact with anyone, "although it has been sometime since I visited the wizarding community". Romana sighed deeply, something told her she wasn't going to like this story, "Contrary to popular belief, the Court of King Arthur wasn't in the West of England but in the area now occupied by London", the Rani continued, "I believe that you stupid apes built your Ministry of Magic on top of the remains of Camelot".

Harry and Ron were stunned by this news, even Romana was too surprised to call the Rani out for insulting the human race, "Oh yes, I had great fun", the Rani continued with a broad smile, "humans of that time were so gullible, so superstitious that they would believe anything, if anything it was too easy".

"I'm not going to like this", Romana grumbled, cursing her TARDIS for ever bringing her back into contact with the Rani.

"Careful Madam President, you're starting to sound like the Doctor", the Rani teased. A small smirk appeared on the dark haired woman's face, "Camelot was nothing like the fairytales of course but there was a Merlin and Morgana".

"You met Merlin?" Ron gasped, "what was he like, did he have the long beard like his pictures?"

The Rani snorted, "Hardly, although he did have grey hair the first time I met him. Although he had a habit of changing his face and he never really stuck around Camelot for long which was perfect for me".

A feeling of dread washed over Romana, "The Doctor was Merlin wasn't he?" The Rani didn't acknowledge the comment but she didn't need to, the mischievous grin on her face told its own story.

"No way", Ron gasped, "your friend is Merlin", he said in Romana's direction.

"So it seems", the Time Lady answered, "which means that Morgana can only be one person". The Rani reached into her jacket and pulled out a small remote control. With a push of a button her appearance changed into a younger woman with long raven black hair. Her clothes shifted into a traditional set of witches robes mostly black but with a few red trim patches, "Terrific, just what I need", her headache was only growing in size with each passing second.

"My second face", the disguised Rani commented, "initially I shielded myself from the Doctor to prevent him from discovering who I was. Once I regenerated I created this holographic projector to keep up the ruse". She pushed the button and shifted back into her normal appearance, "And the famous Doctor never knew it was me, oh the fun I had messing with his precious humans".

Harry snorted, "You brought down King Arthur court and plunged the country into the Dark Ages".

"Earth still is in the Dark Ages little boy", the Rani snapped, "compared to the rest of the galaxy". She quickly regained her composure and straightened her jacket, "It was all in the name of science, I wanted to see if a primitive patriarchal society could follow a female leader if they were strong enough". A satisfied smile appeared on her face, "My hypothesis was completely correct and once that was proven, I left your dirty rock of a planet and moved onto my next experiment".

Romana could feel the anger coming off the two humans. Eager to avoid a confrontation with the dangerous Time Lady she decided to intervene, "Perhaps you two should step outside", Romana suggested, "I would like a private word with the Rani". Harry and Ron hesitated but complied with Romana's request. The moment the TARDIS door closed, the younger Time Lady rounded on the renegade, "You really haven't changed have you?"

"I have no idea what you're talking about", the Rani replied stiffly.

"I knew what the High Council said about you", Romana began, "that you couldn't be trusted, that you only thought of yourself but I decided to give you a chance to help Gallifrey".

The Rani quickly turned on her heel to face away from Romana, "Help Gallifrey", he cried, "you led our planet into a war with the most dangerous species in the universe". She turned around, her eyes blazing with anger, "So tell me Madam President, exactly how did you help Gallifrey?"

That was a question that Romana had asked herself several times during her imprisonment. At the time a full confrontation with the Daleks seemed inevitable. They had discovered time travel technology and were using it to enslave planets throughout the space time continuum. Romana and the rest of the High Council believed the Time Lords were the only one's capable of stopping them. Going against their millennia of non interference, the Time Lords attempted to stop the Daleks with devastating consequences, "You're absolutely right", Romana practically crumbled in defeat, "I did nothing to help Gallifrey".

Silence descended on the Rani's TARDIS, the renegade seemed surprised by how easily Romana had caved in and had no idea how to proceed. The younger Time Lady wallowed in her own misery, even now she still questioned if initiating the attack on the Daleks had been the correct thing to do. The High Council reasoned that eventually the Daleks would attack Gallifrey and a pre-emptive strike was needed. Decades later and Romana wondered if that was the right decision, "For what its worth I think you did the right thing", the Rani's broke the silence.

"I must be going senile but that almost sounded like praise", the Rani merely stood on the spot, refusing to engage Romana any more than necessary, "how do you cope with the silence Rani?" Romana asked, "there used to be so many voices but now there's nothing".

The Rani stiffened slightly and the awkward atmosphere returned, "I'm not your precious Doctor", she snorted, "I'm not talking about your feelings whilst inside my TARDIS".

"Rani please there's only four of us now, can't you let go of that bitterness?" Romana begged.

"Only if you quit with the whiny attitude", the Rani snapped in return, "is this what the famous War Queen of Gallifrey has been reduced to, a moping attitude to match your underdeveloped body". Anger filled every fibre of Romana's being, "How do I cope with the silence? By doing what I'm best at so perhaps you should do the same".

Despite her anger towards the older Time Lady, Romana had to admit that the Rani was correct. Instead of concerning herself with her failures, she should be focusing on the positives. For the first time since her Time Lady consciousness had been restored, Romana finally saw light at the end of the tunnel. Spontaneously she crossed the floor and wrapped her arms tightly around the Rani, "Thank you", she whispered.

The Rani's body was totally rigid, unused to physical contact. Once the initial shock of the moment had worn off, she pushed Romana away, "You tell anyone that this happened and I will disembowel you very slowly and very painfully", she hissed angrily.

"Don't worry, your secrets safe with me", Romana smiled. It then occurred to her that most of the experiments on display hadn't been touched in a while. Some of the jars were covered in dust and one even had a small crack, "You said you cut back on the experiments Rani, just how long has it been since you played with your chemistry set?"

There was no response from the older Time Lady, even to Romana's deliberate jibe about her research. It made her wonder why the Rani had even bothered calling off her loyal subjects, she could've stayed hidden inside her TARDIS and Romana would never have been the wiser, "Do as I say, not as I do Romana", the Rani mumbled.

Romana was sudden filled with a soul crushing loneliness and it wasn't just her own. The Rani was always a solitary Time Lady but choosing to stay away from her fellow Time Lords had been a choice. Now it had been forced upon her which was a completely different story. Romana knew she was going to regret her next few words but she couldn't live with herself if she didn't make this offer, "Come help us", she began, "we're trying to stop a group of dark wizards from destroying the wizarding world".

"Why would I help you stop them?" the Rani sniffed, "I once led a dark army of wizards, remember".

"You did that for science, not out of desire", Romana wasn't sure if that was completely true as there was probably a fair part of the Rani that enjoyed the Dark Arts. "You put a lot of work into that experiment, it would be a shame to see that all destroyed". There was still no response from the Rani but the younger Time Lady could feel the mental wheels turning, "Aren't you the least bit interested to see what became of the world you helped shape?"

"Not really, I'm very happy where I am", the Rani replied without a hint of emotion.

Romana sighed in defeat but she approached the console anyway, "In case you change your mind", she input her eventual destination into the navigational computer.

"I won't, now get out of my TARDIS before I change my mind about letting you live", the Rani snapped. It wasn't a subtle dismissal and Romana walked towards the exit without further comment. At least the Rani wasn't going to be preventing her from stopping Voldemort, perhaps that was a small victory for Romana.


	11. Back To School

_Chapter 11 – Back To School  
_

Romana slammed the Rani's TARDIS door shut and stomped out into the forest. She always hated talking with that woman, a scientist who valued her precious experiments more than anything else. She was so cold and clinical Romana sometimes thought she would get more sense out of a brick wall. The Rani of the Time War had been slightly different, she still valued scientific research but there was a purpose to her experiments, the continuation of the Time Lords. The woman who Romana had just spoken to was a shell of her past self, quietly living out her days in solitude, almost totally without purpose and surviving on the memories of her past glories. The brunette wasn't sure why she asked the Rani to help, maybe out of pity for her loneliness or maybe Romana was just being selfish and wanted another member of her species around.

The Time Lady found Harry and Ron standing nervously a few metres away from the camouflaged TARDIS, their wands ready to defend themselves if necessary. The pair almost looked surprised that she was alone, "Is your friend not coming?" Harry asked.

"The Rani isn't anyone's friend, especially not mine", Romana spat and marched past the wizards without a second glance. She didn't even wait to see if they were following her, all she was concerned about was getting back to her TARDIS and flying away.

"Did you two have an argument?" Ron began, "because I can go back and have a word with her".

Romana smiled to herself at Ron's brave if slightly foolish suggestion, "Thank you for the offer Ron but the Rani has graciously granted us free passage off her planet. It would be wise to take that offer because you have no idea what she's capable of".

Whether the red heads offer was serious or not, his attempt to make Romana feel better had the desired effect and with most of the tension gone, the Time Lady's pace back to the TARDIS slowed. Now that she was able to enjoy the beauty of the planet, Romana realised that the Rani couldn't have picked a better spot to live. The planet would always remain untouched by external forces and if the Rani desired, she could live out the rest of her lives in peace and solitude.

Her natural time sense told her that the Rani had only regenerated once since the Time War and she still had several regenerations left, should she choose to use them. It was rare for a Time Lord or Lady to voluntarily choose not to regenerate but her people were in uncharted territory now. With just a handful left in existence and with no home planet, would the other three members of her species choose to regenerated? The Doctor probably would, if Romana knew him as well as she thought then he would be up to his neck in trouble saving the universe. The Master would choose to live on, it wasn't in his style to end his existence prematurely. The Rani on the other hand was a slightly trickier person to read, she couldn't be happy living on a primitive planet like this one but to refuse regeneration, Romana wasn't sure.

Something the Rani said though did resonate with the former President, if she wanted to be happy then she needed to do something she was good at. Saving planets was more the Doctor's thing but she had acquired a taste for it during their travels. She had failed to keep Gallifrey safe and Romana was determined that the same fate wouldn't befall the wizarding world. "Is that usual for your people", Harry's question broke Romana out of her thoughts, "using other planets as their personal playthings?"

The venom in Harry's question stung Romana, "Of course not, the Time Lords had a strict non interference policy", she snapped, "unfortunately there was a few renegades who disagreed with that philosophy". Romana sighed to release some of her tension, "The Doctor loves Earth and humanity, he only would've interacted with the wizarding world if he felt it was in danger".

"And the Rani?" Ron chipped in.

"The Rani is a gifted biochemist and loves exploring her personal theories and hypothesises", Romana replied, "she has no love for humanity but doesn't truly hate it either. Masquerading as Morgana served no purpose to her other than to prove a theory".

"Pawns basically", Ron grumbled, "that's a little sick if you ask me".

Romana couldn't really disagree with the red head, "She will claim it was all in the name of science and the pursuit of knowledge. That's how the Rani rationalises everything that she's ever done and probably ever will do".

"Sometimes the most dangerous people are the ones who think they're doing things for a purpose", Harry commented, "a little bit like Voldemort, he believes all the lives he's ruined has been for a reason".

The Time Lady remained silent and thought about Harry's surprising deep comment. She saw his logic but disagreed with him slightly. If anyone was like Voldemort it was the Master, full of overtly complicated plans that served no purpose other than to destroy. Of all the Time Lords to have survived, she really hoped that she didn't encounter him in the future.

As they reached the now familiar red phone box, Romana noticed a few of the grey skinned creatures lingering in the shadows, "Get inside", she whispered to the teens and slowly produced her sonic screwdriver. This would be her chance to get some readings on these creatures to confirm a theory of her own.

The loud noise of the sonic device riled the crowd up and soon they began to cry and chant loudly. Romana didn't need the TARDIS translation circuit to know that wasn't a good sound and quickly jumped inside her ship, bolting the door shut behind her, "What did you do to them?" Ron asked in a panic as the creatures banged loudly on the door.

"Scanned their DNA", Romana commented and bounded towards the console, "how was I supposed to know that the sound would upset them?"

"I thought you were meant to be the smart one", Harry snapped and he joined Ron in holding the door closed.

"There's no need to do that, virtually nothing can get through that door once it's locked", Romana stated but taking no chances, she set her craft into flight. Now they were safely away from the Rani and her planet of savages Romana was able to look at the readings from the creatures. Checking the data from the screwdriver, a small frown appeared on her face, "Curious, not completely what I was expecting".

She felt the two wizards move a little closer but neither of them commented. She could sense their interest though so decided to continue, "I was expecting to find traces of mind altering chemicals, that's a common mark of the Rani", she could see a frown on Ron's face, "think of it like a liquid Imperious", she explained to the science ignorant wizard.

"Right got it", Ron nodded, "does that thing say why they look like house elves?"

"Not in so many words but now I've eliminated chemical control I have my own thoughts", Romana answered, "it's quite likely that the Rani bred those creatures from house elves. Maybe she liked the loyalty and dedication elves show to their master and wanted an army of them for herself". She paused and pocketed her screwdriver, "I guess we'll never know exactly without going back and asking her".

"No that's alright", Harry waived off the Time Lady, "there's one thing I don't understand-"

"Just one thing mate", Ron interrupted with a snort, "I'm still bloody lost".

"Just go with it", Harry replied, "that's helping me get through this". Romana looked up from the console and gave the dark haired teen a small smile, "How could the Doctor and the Rani be Merlin and Morgana? You said it yourself that Time Lords can't use magic".

Romana had been thinking about that too and she had only come up with one explanation, "There was a British writer by the name of Arthur C Clarke who came up with three adages", she began, "his most commonly quoted is the third one, any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic".

"So the Doctor and the Rani used technology and passed it off as magic?" Ron asked in confusion, "but muggle stuff isn't meant to work around magic".

"You're thinking too linearly Ron", Romana stated, "Earth technology of the late twenty century might not work but Time Lord technology is far more advanced". She un-holstered her sonic blaster, "With this I could do many things that a wand could, I could use it to stun or even kill someone if I wanted. With the right setting I could replicate a pretty powerful blasting spell", she placed the weapon back in its holster, "imagine seeing something like this over fifteen hundred years ago, how could you possibly explain it to someone?"

The two teens glanced at each other before mumbling together, "Magic".

"Precisely but Clarke's Law work in reverse too", Romana continued, "if someone from a technologically advanced world saw someone apparate, they would believe you had done that using a personal teleporter rather than magic".

"So there's no way you could beat Voldemort by yourself", Harry asked, "we're going to have to work together to stop him".

Ron nodded in agreement, "Magic and technology working in harmony, kind of ironic really when you think about it".

A devious grin appeared on Romana's face, that was exactly what she had in mind, "Well then boys, shall we do this?" Harry and Ron nodded firmly, their conviction written firmly across their face, "Right then Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry, First of May 1998 coming right up".

Romana's hands were a blur as she set course for the magical school. There was a small bump in the time vortex once she had confirmed their destination but a minor correction soon smoothed their path. Something was building up inside Romana's mind thought, that same feeling of dread she felt after leaving Gringotts behind. Something big was about to happen, something that couldn't be avoided. The trio were heading straight into a fixed point in time, the rigid nature of the event assaulted Romana's time sense. Everything was telling her to leave but she couldn't turn back now, not when they were so close to the end.

The landing was a little bumpier than expected, the TARDIS was probably unhappy about entering a fixed point too. Harry was nearest to the door and he cautiously took a look outside, "Looks like the Great Hall", he commented, "and the TARDIS has disguised itself as a statue".

"Good, that will draw less attention to ourselves", Romana locked the TARDIS controls and joined the dark haired teen outside. Through the windows she could see the setting sun which given the time of year, should've meant that it was approaching the end of evening meal time. At least that's what she recalled from Hermione's memories. The corridors of the entrance hall were deathly silent though, almost like everyone was hiding, "I don't like this", Romana commented.

A sudden and piercing cry of pain grabbed their attention and immediately the trio sprinting in the direction of the sound. Romana leapt up the stone steps two at a time, her sonic blaster already in hand. They heard the scream against and narrowed it down to the first floor corridor. The boys wanted to charge in but Romana held them back. If she learned anything from the Time War, it was to always take a few moments to assess the situation. Many a Time Lord had failed to do this and paid for it with their lives.

Peeking around the corridor, Romana could see three large boys in Slytherin robes standing over two fallen students. The red trim indicated they were Gryffindor students, "Stop protecting the girl Longbottom", Romana's eyes widened, one of the fallen was Neville.

"Maybe the blood traitor wants a bed next to his Mummy and Daddy", another one of the students taunted. There was a flash of red and one of the boys stumbled backwards with giant boils growing on his face. Neville had defiantly fired a hex at the attacker, "You'll pay for that Longbottom", the student hissed.

Romana didn't need to hear any more and immediately fired a stun bolt from her blaster. The overpowered shot sent the would-be attacked tumbling several feet down the corridor. The other two Slytherin's immediately turned around, only to be met with stunning spells fired by Harry and Ron. With the attackers neutralised Romana sprinted over to the fallen Neville. His face was swollen with an impressive bruise and there was blood coming out of his nose but otherwise he looked in good shape. Ron though was more concerned with the identity of the girl he was protecting, "Ginny", he cried, "if I had known I would've used something stronger than a bloody stunner".

"Good to see you too brother", Ginny Weasley slowly stood up, "we had the situation perfectly under control". Moments later the tough facade fell and she threw her arms around her youngest brother, "I'm glad that you're alright though, you too Harry", she added shyly towards the dark haired teen.

"How about you Neville, can you stand?" Romana offered her hand to the fallen teen.

Neville nodded, "Yeah", he took the hand and jumped to his feet. Almost immediately though he began to sway, "Nope", he added and slumped into Romana's arms, "You smell different Hermione, are you using different shampoo?"

"Clearly concussed or a delusional stalker", Romana shrugged, "we need to get him some help", she said to Ginny, "is Madam Pomfrey still here?"

"Yes but take him to the Room of Requirement, we've set up a base of operations there", the girl replied. Without looking back, Romana practically carried the taller and much heavier Neville towards the seventh floor, "There's something different about Hermione", the red haired girl commented, "what have you three been up to?"

"Trust me Ginny that's story that can wait for another day", Harry placed his arm gently around her shoulder, "right now we have bigger problems to worry about".


	12. Interloper

_Chapter 12 – Interloper_

To Romana's surprise the Room of Requirement had turned itself into a rudimentary shelter. Hammocks were strung between the stone pillars and by the Time Lady's reckoning, some of them had been occupied for several months. Occasionally she caught snippets of conversations about life at the school over the last year, the hushed whispers about the Carrows and their liberal use of the torture curse infuriated the Time Lady. She despaired that a human could be so cruel to another member of their species, especially when children were involved. Somehow an institute of learning had turned into a prison camp.

The students inside the room were elated to see the trio and for several minutes they were bombarded with questions. Reluctantly Romana slipped back into her human guise, answering the queries exactly how Hermione would've done, inside though the alien woman wanted to shout about her true heritage to the gathered masses. She reigned herself in though, once again this wasn't the time to open that can of worms.

Eventually the constant questioning ceased, allowing Harry and Ron to mingle around the room. Romana was happy to stay in the shadows, these were the wizards peers and not hers. There was a small pang of jealousy though when it became obvious that the student body was happy to leave Romana to her own devices. She was aware that her human alter ego wasn't a social butterfly but seeing dozens of Hermione's peers largely ignore her was a little painful.

The mood soon brightened with the arrival of several members of the Order of the Phoenix through a portrait in the far corner of the room. According to the students the portrait connected The Hog's Head pub in Hogsmeade. To her surprise the bar was owned by Aberforth Dumbledore, the younger brother of the deceased Headmaster. The tunnel had been used to smuggle students out during the worst of the Carrow's reign of terror.

Romana instantly recognised some of the people arriving, the rest of the Weasley family including, to her surprise, Percy. Clearly the loyal Ministry worker had seen the light and reunited with his family. There were others too, Remus, Tonks, Kingsley Shacklebolt, Oliver Wood the old Gryffindor Quidditch captain along with the teams old Chasers Angelina Johnson, Alicia Spinnet and Katie Bell. They weren't the only former students either, Romana quickly identified Cho Chang emerging from the portal. All in all there must've been around thirty people, all willing to fight to defend the school and the students.

Internally the Time Lady lamented, it was a decent number but Voldemort's forces numbered into the hundreds. It would take more than a few brave volunteers to win this battle which was why it was important for her to put her plan into motion as quickly as possible. If her calculations were correct then it could end the battle before it even begun but it would take several hours to put together, "Hermione dear", the Time Lady was dragged from her brooding by Mrs Weasley. Before Romana realised it, the matriarch of the Weasley family had enveloped her in a tight hug, "It's good to see you looking well, I must admit that this new look is certainly a departure from your old style".

"Thank you, I think", Romana mumbled in response. Compared to the fashion choice of her previous incarnations, her current taste was fairly restrained. If she really wanted to surprise the witch then maybe she should've broken out the white dress with the long slit and fluffy white coat worn by her original incarnation. She smiled to herself, wondering what everyone's reaction would've been then, "Sorry Mrs Weasley you're crushing my ribs". That wasn't true, her denser than human muscle mass meant that she barely felt anything but it sounded like something Hermione would've said.

"Oh sorry dear", Mrs Weasley replied, "come join the rest of us".

Romana nodded, no force in the known universe would be able to resist Mrs Weasley when she was on a mission. She gave a muted wave to the other Weasley's, "Hello everyone", she greeted.

"Good to see you're safe Hermione", Bill replied, "I was just saying to Ron that you're clothes clean up well, they look as clean as the day you left". Romana nodded slowly, technically they were exactly the same clothes as when they left Shell Cottage. Everything they had done since had only taken place over a few hours for them but thanks to the TARDIS, they had been able to skip ahead a couple of weeks.

"Looking good Hermy", Fred smiled in her direction, "bet you knocked Ronny's socks off when he saw you".

Romana groaned, "Firstly Fred don't call me Hermy", her voice trailed off, there was something swirling around Fred. It took her a few moments to realise that it was his time stream and it was very much in flux, more so than his twin's or some others in the room. Seeing the potential for everything had its down side, especially this close to a major battle. A swirling timeline like Fred's told her that he was in serious danger. Of course everyone was in danger in this situation but somehow the probability of death was higher around Fred than anyone else.

"Look I know I'm handsome Hermy but there's no need to stare", Fred chuckled, slightly unnerved with the way the Time Lady was staring at him.

For a few seconds Romana felt like warning him but what could she possibly say? Neither Fred or anyone else in the room would listen to her, they knew they were taking a risk and were happy to accept the possibility of death. What could she possibly say that would make any difference to his actions? Fortunately for the morally conflicted Time Lady a voice pierced the room, " _All students will report to the Great Hall immediately"_. Romana recognised that voice, it was the current Headmaster of Hogwarts Severus Snape.

"He must know we're here", Harry began, "we need to search this room quickly and get out of here".

Romana glanced sideways as the teen, whatever action they were going to take against Voldemort it would have to happen today, "No", she stated simply.

"What do you mean no?" Ron asked incredulously, "we still need to get the you-know-what's to finish off you-know-who".

"Does the word no have a different meaning on Earth?" Romana began stiffly, "we're done running, the time lines converge here I'm afraid. The battle with the Dark Lord will begin tonight".

The room dropped into a frantic silence as whispers of what Romana said began to travel around the room. She could see people looking at her with a mixture of fear, curiosity and indignation. She wondered if this was how Luna Lovegood felt every time she opened her mouth, "Sorry, excuse us for a minute", Harry gently ushered Romana away from the rest of the group, "do you know something we don't?"

"Yes but that's shouldn't really be a surprise", she replied haughtily, "but specifically about the coming battle, let's just say I have a sense for these kind of things".

The two wizards looked at each other, they were beginning to familiarise themselves with the unusual abilities of the Time Lady, "Look Harry we're going to have to go", Neville spoke for the students, "but whatever happens we'll be behind you, all the way".

As the students began to filter out the room Romana used the distraction to elaborate, "Time Lords have an innate sense for when events important to history are about to happen", she began, "we call them fixed points. If anyone attempts to interfere with a fixed point then the consequences could be dire".

"So let's go then", Ron stated, "jump in that box of yours and fly away".

"It's not that simple", Romana continued with her lecture, "our timelines are also interlinked with this point in time. If we left then the point would collapse and so could time itself, potentially". A grave look flashed across the teen wizards, "The good thing is that the outcome is still in flux, the fixed point relates to the battle, not to how the battle will be won".

"How's that's a good thing?" Harry asked in confusion, "that could mean that the Death Eaters win, doesn't it?"

Romana nodded, she had to agree with Harry's point there, "Well yes but that also means that maybe no one has to die at all. This battle could be won without a single spell being fired".

That grabbed the attention of the wizards, "How are we going to do that?" Harry began, "we know that You-Know-Who is already on his way, he's probably on the edge of the wards by now".

"Time Harry", Romana pleaded, "that's all I need, just buy me a little bit of time".

"Can't you use the TARDIS to go back and start whatever it is you need to do?" Ron asked.

"I can't cross my own time stream", Romana shook her head, "meeting yourself would be bad and should only happen in extremely dire situations". She had heard stories from the Doctor about how he had encountered earlier versions of himself and the situation he had described was indeed dire. She herself had met the original five regenerations of the Doctor, albeit briefly, during the incident in the Death Zone of Gallifrey. Fortunately she hadn't met her previous incarnations, not that she remembered anyway.

"So what's the plan then?" Harry began, "the quicker we find the Horcrux the better".

A devious smile flashed across Romana's face, "Maybe the Dark Lord would be hesitant to attack if he knew we were inside". She quickly straightened out her jacket and continued, "He knows we're hunting Horcruxes right?" the others nodded, "it would be reckless to charge into battle knowing that the person destroying his immortality was inside. Logic dictates that he would run and hide whilst he had the chance".

"Yeah but when has anything that You-Know-Who done recently made sense", Ron snorted, "he a few beans short of a box of Bertie Bott's if you know what I mean". Sadly Romana did know exactly what Ron meant. Perhaps it was a side effect of splitting his soul but Voldemort seemed to be much more erratic than portrayed in the books on the First War, "Still we haven't got a better plan and you haven't been wrong up until now", the red head added.

"So no pressure then", Romana smiled, "come along companions, we've got work to do".

As the trio headed out the room, they were quickly stopped by Mrs Weasley, "You can't go down down to the Great Hall?" she practically shrieked, "Snape will hand you over in a heartbeat".

Ron was about to respond by Romana placed her arm across his chest, "Mrs Weasley you can't tell me where I can and can't go", the Weasley matriarch looked stunned by the harsh words of the Time Lady, "I suggest you all prepare for a fight".

Without waiting for a response Romana led the wizards out the Room of Requirement and into the dark corridors of the castle, "Little harsh on my Mum weren't you?" Ron sniped at the Time Lady.

"Ron I really like your mother but you know that the only way to prevent a protracted argument with her is to cut her off quickly and early", Romana smiled in reply.

"It is?" Ron gasped at this apparent new information, "so that's where I've been going wrong for the last eighteen years". Romana snorted with laughter quickly, "How did you work that out?"

"I didn't, Ginny told Hermione that one", Romana replied, "you should pay more attention to your sister Ronald, you might learn a thing or two".

Harry offered a loud bark of laughter at his best friend's expense before turning his attention the Time Lady, "Do you really think we can win?" he asked.

"There's one thing my four hundred years have taught me Harry", Romana began, "no one really wins at war. There just happens to be one side who doesn't lose quite as much". Leaving her friends to ponder the future, Romana turned her attention to the present. Voldemort would soon be at the door and she had to hope that her gamble paid off. If it didn't then Hogwarts was in for a very bloody and protracted battle.

 _ **A/N –**_ _As a special thank you for over 100 favourites, here's a bonus mid week chapter. Also created a new cover photo for the story cause I was a little bored last night._

 _So the overwhelming response I've had to the story has inspired/encouraged me to carry on past the end of The Deathly Hallows which will mean incorporating more from the Whoniverse. This will include a visit from our favourite Time Lord in the near future. Yup I've finally decided which Doctor we shall see first..._


	13. Staff Meeting

_Chapter 13 – Staff Meeting  
_

The trio stuck to the shadowy corridors of the school, allowing the students left behind to filter into the Great Hall. Romana didn't need her telepathic abilities to recognise the air of defeat hovering around the youngsters. Rage began to bubble underneath the surface and her infamous War Queen of Gallifrey incarnation threatened to take over. Her last regeneration had been cold, ruthless and almost without mercy towards her enemies. She was barely any kinder towards her allies either, often coming to verbal blows with long time friend the Doctor during his Eighth incarnation.

The War Queen got along much better with the warrior he regenerated into and gleefully pointed him towards legions of Daleks, confident in the knowledge that they would soon be destroyed. Romana though didn't want to be the War Queen today though, as evil as they were the Death Eaters were still human. She had to at least give them the chance to surrender but if any of them threatened or harmed children against, she might not be able to control herself.

Lingered outside the Great Hall for a couple of minutes, Romana was soon satisfied that all the students were inside. She quickly scanned the statues outside the door and deactivated the chameleon circuit on the TARDIS. Time was of the essence and she couldn't waste precious seconds trying to find her ship. The illusion soon dissolved in the now familiar red telephone box rather than the default cylinder shape of the TARDIS, "This is starting to grow on me", she rubbed the outer shell of her craft, "no wonder the Doctor is so reluctant to fix the circuit on his TARDIS".

Out the corner of her eye she spotted Harry about to charge into the Great Hall but the Time Lady stopped him, "I'm not going to let Snape play at being Headmaster longer than I have to", the dark haired wizard spat, "you know what he did".

"Yes I do", Romana answered, "but I learned one important lesson I learned during my adventures with the Doctor".

She opened the door to the hall a fraction to allow Snape's speech to filter outside, "I have heard rumours that Harry Potter is inside the castle", the silky smooth voice of the Headmaster reached the Time Lady's ears. Just the sound of his voice chilled Romana's blood, there was something unnerving about a human who had tight control on his emotions, "I am here to confirm that these rumours are false".

The former Potions Master droned on for a minute or so, spouting the usual rhetoric about Voldemort and how he was in full control over the school. She could see the two wizards itching to charge in but she kept a tight grip on the door handle, "This thing you learned from the Doctor, how is it important right now?" Ron asked.

Romana held up a finger, still listening to Snape's speech, "Harry Potter is a coward", the Headmaster boomed, "he would not dare defy the Dark Lord and step foot in this castle".

The Time Lady smiled broadly, "He taught me how to make a dramatic entrance", and with that she pulled the doors open forcefully and almost pushed Harry into the Great Hall.

The entrance had the desired effect and almost instantly the Great Hall was stunned into silence. Every single head turned into their direction, followed soon by a quiet whisper. Romana could feel the mood in the room lift as the trio strode towards the staff table. Instead of the usual house tables the students were standing in two large groups, the Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs on one side with the Ravenclaws and Slytherins on the other.

The Time Lady was confident that at least three quarters of the room were on their side. Certainly the Gryffindors were, they were practically bouncing with excitement. The Slytherins were harder to read, they had an air of someone who just had the wind knocked out of them, their once confident air deflated just by Harry's presence. On that point Romana wasn't delusional, even though Ron and her human alter ego had gone on the Horcrux hunt, it was definitely Harry who was the beacon of hope for the wizarding world.

Further down the natural aisle between the sea of students, Romana spotted a few older Slytherin students notably Draco Malfoy. These students almost looked fearful at the sight of the Time Lady to the point that Romana wondered what was written into human history about her species. There was even a few that respectfully nodded, indicating that news of her true heritage was beginning to spread.

The trio soon reached the staff table with Romana sure to keep Harry at the head of their small group. She could feel that Harry wanted to defer to her but Romana kept him in front. For better or worse he was the focal point of this, not her. Professors McGonagall and Flitwick had a ghost of a smile on their lips but kept it control. Hagrid though couldn't contain his excitement at seeing the trio again. All this made Romana sad that they wouldn't get to say a proper farewell to Hermione Granger. These Professors had been her human disguises favourites but now that student was gone, overwritten by her true self.

There were two other Professors at the table that Romana didn't recognise and she quickly deduced that these were the infamous Carrow twins. The murderous and unhinged glint in their eyes certainly helped with her deduction. That just left Snape whose face was its typical neutral mask or at least it was until he laid eyes on Harry. The teen certainly didn't help matters with the broad smirk on his face, "My ears are burning Headmaster", he spat that word in disgust, "were you talking about me?"

"Arrogant to the last Potter", Snape sneered in return, "just like your father". Romana waited for the emotional outburst from Harry but to the teen's credit, he kept control of his simmering temper, "Nothing to say for yourself?" Snape added.

"How dare you", Harry began with a hushed tone, "how dare you stand where he stood and lecture these students". For a brief moment Snape looked like he had been slapped but quickly regained emotional control, "Tell them what you did" Harry continued, his voice beginning to crescendo, "tell everyone how you murdered Albus Dumbledore".

Suddenly Romana was alert and ready to fight, Harry had just thrown a match onto a highly volatile situation. Angry jeers came from the side of the room with the Gryffindors whilst the Slytherin section looked ready to jump in defence of their former head of house. McGonagall and Flitwick had their wands ready but were beaten to the punch by the Carrows. This was exactly what she was trying to prevent, rash action fuelled by primitive human emotion. She was ready to step in but Harry beat her to it, firing a blasting spell into the air, "Stop, this isn't what Professor Dumbledore would've wanted", he cried.

"Nothing but Dumbledore's pet", a jeer came from the Slytherin section, the shrill voice sounded suspiciously like Pansy Parkinson, "I say we hand him over to the Dark Lord, he'll reward us handsomely".

Another wave of anger and verbal curses, fortunately not magical ones, flashed across the Great Hall. Romana finally had enough and edged closer to Snape, "Tell me Professor does this scene make you happy?" she began with a dangerous whisper, "your school is degenerating into anarchy yet you appear to be doing nothing to stop it".

"Let me Severus", the female Carrow twin piped up with glee in her voice, "I'll teach these little bastards some proper respect".

Romana was very close to pulling out her sonic blaster but it appeared that Professor McGonagall had the same idea. With a furious look that the no one gather had ever seen before, she quickly cursed the female Carrow, sending her smashing into the staff table. Her twin immediately jumped to her defence, only to run into the diminutive Professor Flitwick. A brief but furious duel erupted but the former duelling champion and head of Ravenclaw quickly overpowered Amycus Carrow. The male twin fell to the ground wrapped in heavy iron chains and for good measure, stunned into unconsciousness.

The display of power soon silenced the Great Hall and even Romana was impressed. She had encountered some skilled warriors over the centuries and the two Professors could count themselves amongst that number, "There will be no more death here Severus", McGonagall began in her Scottish brogue, "tell that to your master".

Snape had his wand ready but looked reluctant to unleash any curses. The numbers were certainly against him, McGonagall and Flitwick's quick defeat of the Carrow's had galvanised the student body. Romana was certain that anyone not wearing green and silver would be willing to take their shot at the Headmaster.

Instead of unleashing a spell Romana suddenly felt Snape try to enter her mind. His efforts were swiftly and painful rebutted, the complex nature of her alien biology proving too difficult to breach with Snape's human mind. As he clutched his head in pain, a murmuring began to build around the Hall, "You just had to know if it was true didn't you?" Romana snorted derisively, "tell me Professor what did you see?"

The Time Lady almost rejoiced at the fearful look on Snape's face, he now knew the truth and if he had any sense he would run. Romana wasn't too surprised when the Headmaster pointed his wand in her direction. There must be something about the human psyche that caused it to lash out violently against the unknown. If she ever got around to finishing the thesis she started nearly three hundred years ago, she would definitely explore this further.

Very quickly Harry and Ron stood defensively in front of the Time Lady, swiftly followed by McGonagall and Flitwick. Face with overwhelming odds Snape began to back away but Romana had some parting words, "I used to be very merciful but your master is trying my patience", she said coldly. "Tell him this Severus because this is his final warning. If he or any or his followers take aggressive action against the school or its students, he must be prepared to face the consequences".

Romana wasn't sure but she was almost certain there was a stiff nod from the Professor. Before she could question it further the Headmaster turned into a cloud of black smoke, flying through the stained glass window behind the staff table. Instantly three quarters of the room burst out into cheers and applause. The Time Lady used the happier mood to refocus her mind, pushing her darker thoughts away, "You three shouldn't have come here", McGonagall finally address the trio, "but it's good to see you", she added with a broad smile.

"Good to see you too Professor", Harry replied, "he's coming here, tonight", he added with urgency. The mere mention of the Dark Lord soon brought the fate back into the room, "We need to clear as many people out as possible".

The Deputy Headmistress nodded and addressed the gathered student body, "All students return to your common rooms where your prefects help you floo to safety. They are aware of the safe location for student transportation". She then turned towards the current Potions Master, "Professor Slughorn, please ensure that Slytherin House is safely secured in their common room".

Another loud cheer erupted as the Slytherins were escorted from the Great Hall. Not for the first time today, Romana wondered how things had gotten so bad that a quarter of students were instantly distrusted because of the house they were sorted into. "Alright Potter what do you need from us?" McGonagall asked the dark haired teen.

"Time Professor", Harry began, "we have a plan but we'll need time to put everything into place-"

"And we'll need the Great Hall cleared", Romana interrupted the wizard, "not just cleared of people but tables, benches, fittings and basically anything that isn't nailed down". McGonagall looked confused by the request but quickly granted their request and began to prepare the defence of the school.

With the Hall beginning to empty of people, Romana led the two wizards towards the entrance where her TARDIS was parked, "When I said we have a plan", Harry began, "we do have a plan right?"

"Of course we do", Romana replied, "if by we you mean me, naturally".

"What about the Horcrux in the Room of Requirement?" Ron asked, "shouldn't we get in there and destroy it?"

Romana thought about this, for her plan to work it wouldn't be essential to destroy the Horcrux. Having said that it would have to be disposed of sooner or later and sending the wizards after the item would keep them from getting bored whilst she set her plan into motion. "Fine I'll leave you two in charge of that", she began, "the Sword of Gryffindor is still in the TARDIS. You can let me unload some of my equipment before setting off".

The Time Lady unlocked the TARDIS to allow the teens entrance and after taking a quick look around to make sure they weren't being watched, followed inside after them. Romana didn't look closely enough, if she had then she would've seen a curious Ginny Weasley watch the trio disappear into the cramped looking telephone box.


	14. Unwanted Distraction

_Chapter 14 – Unwanted Distraction  
_

Hidden in the depths of Romana's TARDIS was a room that she had seldom used in the time she had possessed the craft. A little like the Room of Requirement, the room had become a dumping ground for the bits and pieces she had accumulated over the centuries. It was so infrequently used that the Time Lady hadn't even bothered to decorate it. The walls still carried the default setting of white walls and evenly spaced circular patterns which adorned every TARDIS straight out the factory.

If Romana had more time she would've loved rummaging around in this store room. There were various projects and memento's dating back to her Academy days, some of which she hadn't seen in centuries. Harry and Ron must've been enjoying themselves as well because she hadn't heard from them in a while. Realising that what she was looking for wasn't nearby, she set off to find her human companions. The Time Lady eventually found them sitting on the floor looking through a stack of pictures, "I leave you alone for five minutes and you start slacking off", she scolded the duo, "have you even found the box I asked you to look for?"

"Calm down Romana", Harry patted his hand against a black and yellow crate covered in circular symbols, "we found it but got a little distracted".

"Yeah by these pictures", Ron held up some of the prints, "these are wicked, better than wizard ones any day".

Romana sighed and crouched down next to the red head. In his hand were a number of three dimensional pictures filled with images of young Time Lords and Ladies. Romana smiled at the images, "This was my graduation class", she remembered that day like it was yesterday, "I graduated with the highest marks ever recorded by the Academy". As Romana's gaze lingered on the pictures her hearts began to fill with sorrow. Every single person in those frames was gone, some died during the Time War but the rest would've been on Gallifrey at the very end. It was moments like this that made Romana realise how alone she was in the universe.

"Hey check this one out", Ron held up an image of a striking brunette with piercing brown eyes, "I'd love to be a Time Lord if all the girls were this gorgeous".

The Time Lady wanted to admonish Ron for his crude behaviour but after seeing the photo in his hand, she suddenly had a better idea, "Why thank you Ron but I was still really young then, barely a hundred and twenty if I recall".

Romana's playful comment had the desire effect and Ron blushed so deeply with embarrassment that his face nearly matched his hair, "That's you?" Harry asked, taking a closer look at the picture.

"My original incarnation", Romana sighed, "probably my favourite in terms of looks and style but she could be really stuck up sometimes". The Time Lady rubbed her thumb over the picture, she had been a little bossy when she was younger. She snorted with laughter, that was quite similar to her human incarnation as well, "My second wasn't too bad either but I liked the curls I had then", she continued, "but we can go through my photo album another day".

"You never did tell us what was in this crate", Harry began, "I really like the patterns though, very arty".

"That's the language of my people, really beautiful to look at", Romana smiled, it had been a long time since she had seen any written Gallifreyan. As she looked closer she began to cringe, "Although this is more like graffiti, a graduation day prank if I recall".

"So this is like your school trunk then", Ron inspected the crate a little. Carefully he lifted the lid and peeked inside, "Blimey this is bigger on the inside too".

The Time Lady snorted, "If we can perform dimensional engineering on our time ships, why wouldn't we do it to our boxes too?" The wizards nodded slowly, conceding Romana's point, "Actually I worked on this project during my final decade at the Academy, my final school project if you will".

"Still doesn't tell us what's inside though", Harry frowned.

"No offence Harry but you really wouldn't understand", Romana beckoned for Ron to lift the crate, "unless you understand the concepts of eleventh dimension engineering and quantum dilation theory".

Harry stared blankly at the Time Lady, "I don't even understand what you said".

"Exactly", Romana smirked, "and that was the simple version, now come along I need to get started as soon as possible".

Weaving their way back through the corridors of the TARDIS, Romana hoped that her school project actually operated correctly. The device had worked back on Gallifrey because it had access to the Untempered Schism. The temporal energy field which surrounded the planet provided it with the power needed to operate. She had done a few mental calculations and in theory the magnetic energy in Earth's Van Allen belt should work but it was purely guess work until she got everything operational.

Soon enough they found their way out of the rear corridors and into the console room. Unfortunately they encountered something quite unexpected, an angry looking Ginny Weasley, "What the hell is this place?" she cried, "and what is that thing you're carrying".

"Ginny just calm down a moment would you", Ron attempted to calm his younger sister.

"Don't tell me to calm down Ronald Weasley", Ginny snapped, "the three of you disappear, spend months away without a single word and then just drop back in unannounced with this", she waived her hand around struggling to find an appropriate term for the TARDIS, "in this thing, whatever it is".

"A TARDIS", Romana replied, "that stands for Time and Relative Dimensions in Space".

Ginny gaped at the Time Lady, Romana's answer had clearly taken some wind out of her sails, "What does that even mean?" she eventually answered. Romana pinched the bridge of her nose, she didn't have time for this argument with the girl, "Don't get me started on you Hermione", she added sharply.

Romana stood with her hands in her pocket until she suddenly remembered that she was still supposed to be Hermione, "Me?" she snapped, "what have I done?"

"Where do I start", Ginny was really on a roll now, "the hair, the clothes or how about threatening Snape". Romana stared back impassively, Ginny was sharper than people gave her credit for, "It's like you're a totally different person", the Time Lady shrugged slightly because that was actually true. "Just tell me the truth for once", Ginny added, "I'd like to know what the three of you are actually up to".

"The truth", Romana answered before letting out a loud sigh, "that's not quite as simple as it sounds".

"Well how hard can it be", Ginny cried, "I'm smart I'll understand. I'll also know when you're fobbing me off so don't you dare lie".

Romana glanced over towards the wizards but they weren't being much help. The look on Ron's face practically told Romana she was on her own with the rest of this conversation. She glanced towards the roof of the TARDIS, there didn't seem much point continuing with the facade any longer, "The truth is this Ginny", she began, "my name is Romanadvoratrelundar, I'm a four hundred and thirteen year old alien and this is my ship which can travel in space and time".

There was complete silence in the TARDIS for several seconds. Even the usual humming from the various devices inside the ship seemed to go quiet. Romana found Ginny's expression hard to read, she didn't look like she had dismissed the Time Lady completely but there was definitely something brewing behind Ginny's eyes. It didn't take Romana long to find out exactly what that something was, "I could handle Ron lying to me Hermione but I really didn't expect it from you".

"Hey", Ron cried indignantly.

"But if you think I'm going to buy that shitty story then you've got another thing coming", Ginny continued, "so how about we try that again".

"Ginny she's not lying", Harry bravely stepped into the argument, "we've been to space and everything".

Ginny snorted, "Space, sure", she shook her head, "alright then take me to your home planet", the red head added mockingly.

"I can't do that Ginny", Romana replied solemnly, even thinking about Gallifrey at the moment was too painful.

"Yeah that's what I thought", Ginny snapped, "what kind of spaceship can't even take you home-"

"I can't take you because my planet is gone", Romana interrupted the red head's rant, "it was destroyed during a war". She sighed, her shoulders slumping in defeat, "You can probably count the number of Time Lords left on one hand".

Silence once again reigned over the TARDIS as Romana watched Ginny carefully. The youngster Weasley was thinking carefully about the Time Lady's comments but really it could go either way at the moment. If Romana had to psycho analyse Ginny right now, she was currently in the denial phase of the grief cycle, "Alright say I believe this", the red head began, "where's Hermione then?"

"That's a little harder-" Ron began but didn't get very far in his sentence.

"If one more person tells me it's hard to explain, I swear I'm going to scream", Ginny practically shrieked.

Romana checked the chrono on the console, more precious minutes were being wasted and her patience was beginning to get exhausted by this argument, "We really don't have time for this", she groaned. She quickly stretched her fingers, giving them a little wiggle. She strode towards Ginny with her hands around the same level as the teen's head, "I'm sorry but I'm going to have to speed things up".

"What are you doing?" Ginny backed away nervously, "are you going to do some weird alien mind wipe or something".

"What, no", Romana shook her head, "I'm going to do a telepathic thought transfer, that way you can see that I'm telling the truth". The red head didn't look too convinced though, "You've got every right to be cautious but trust me, no harm will come to you". Ginny looked over Romana's shoulder and the Time Lady guessed she was getting reassurance from the other wizards. She looked reluctant slowly nodded her head in acceptance, "Thank you now hold still, I'm a little out of practice with this".

"Why didn't you do this with us?" Harry asked, "would've made things so much quicker".

The Time Lady rolled her eyes, "If I remember correctly, Ronald nearly walked out into the depths of space which served as its own proof". She closed her eyes and began to focus on her personal memories, "Now quiet, I need to concentrate".

Romana pulled forth some memories that would explain everything to Ginny as quickly as possible. She recalled the red sky of Gallifrey, her years at the Academy interspersed with her travels with the Doctor. The images flicked onto her term as President of Gallifrey, making sure to skip over large chunks of the Time War. Finally she focused on her rebirth through the Chameleon Arch and the 'death' of Hermione Granger. Very slowly she opened her eyes and found that Ginny was already looking at her, "So Hermione is...", he voice trailed off but Romana still nodded in confirmation, "I'm not really sure what to say".

By now Ron and Harry had joined the two females and the youngest Weasley son nudged Ginny gently, "Welcome to our world little sister", he teased.

"Ginny I know this is hard but I just want you to know that Hermione consider you one of her best friends", Romana stated, "if there was a way for both of us to exist I would do it but there isn't"

"I know", Ginny sniffed, "thank you for showing me", she then turned to Ron and punched him on the arm, much to his indignation, "that's for calling me little".

"Yeah she's going to be fine", Ron rubbed the sore spot on his arm, "now let's get moving, we still need to find the you know what on the seventh floor".

"Tom's Horcrux you mean", Ginny said to the surprise of the wizards, "Romana let that slip in her memories". Harry and Ron looked at the Time Lady but she merely shrugged, "Let me help you, I've had personal experience of those things and not many people can say that".

For a moment Ron was going to protest but Harry interjected himself quickly, "Good idea". Romana turned towards the wizards, she knew how Harry felt about the girl so she was a little surprised that he would suggest taking her Horcrux hunting, "We need an extra pair of eyes", he continued, "plus if I know where you are I won't worry about you".

"I'm perfectly capable of taking care of myself", Ginny snapped.

"I know, if I didn't think you were I wouldn't have asked you along", Harry quickly added.

Romana had to admire how Harry had talked his way out of that corner but time really was against them now. They had spent nearly half an hour inside the TARDIS searching and talking which was time she hadn't spent on her device, "Lovely now that's settled I really need to get to work". She picked up the crate and carried it towards the door, "Don't do anything stupid, reckless or dangerous".

"You know us Romana", Ron smiled as he followed the Time Lady out.

"I know, what was I thinking", she sighed, knowing they were probably going to run into trouble straight away. With the two youngest Weasley and Harry heading to the Room of Requirement, she headed for the Great Hall. She hoped that Professor McGonagall had cleared everything out, otherwise some very precious items would be lost forever.


	15. Fury Of The Storm

_Chapter 15 – Fury Of The Storm_

The Great Hall of Hogwarts was eerily silent with only the occasional whine of a sonic screwdriver to break up the oppressive silence. Romana had been working patiently and alone for well over an hour now. Around the doorway to the Great Hall was a large free standing metal frame. It was a simple three beam construction that stood around four to five inches away from the stone wall. The lack of conductive material in the castle was making it extremely hard for the Time Lady to get full power through the arch.

The ambient magic in the area also provided a complication but Romana's own personal computer was probably protected against the phenomenon. It wasn't making the calculations any easier though, "I really wish K-9 was here right now", she sighed, "he would have this worked out in a matter of seconds". When Romana chose to leave the Doctor and remain in E-Space, the robotic dog had become her loyal companion. Even after she returned to Gallifrey, K-9 stayed by her side until the very end. Out of everyone lost to her during the Time War, the loss of K-9 probably affected her the most.

For the last fifteen minutes the castle vibrated to the sounds and explosions of a raging battle. Romana was concentrating so hard on blocking out the noise that she was losing focus. Even thought she wasn't trapped in the Great Hall, the stony walls and distant battle sounds reminded her too much of her imprisonment during the final days of the Time War. K-9 was an impassionate machine, he didn't have such trivial concerns like emotions to worry about when making tricky calculations.

The flashbacks weren't helped by her feelings of guilt. Her Voldemort gamble clearly hadn't paid off as the Dark Lord had begun an attack on the castle. Either he had lost the last of his common sense or the wizard was extremely confident about overwhelming the school's defences. Romana thought the wards around the castle would hold out longer than they did but everything had its breaking point.

Stepping back from her creation Romana held her breath as her finger hovered about the activation button. The sequence had been typed in but she was a little hesitant to fully boot the system up. Using this on Earth as opposed to Gallifrey threw up enough variables. Trying to get it to function in a medieval castle soaked in magic was almost asking the impossible. She had to try though, the battle had already begun but if she could save someone then it would be worth it, "Fingers crossed", she mumbled.

Romana pressed the button and took a few paces back. The circuits began to hum into life and for a few glorious seconds she believed it was going to work. Suddenly sparks began to fly from the metal cross beams and her computer warned of an impending failure. In her haste the Time Lady didn't bother with the shut down sequence, pulling out her screwdriver and triggering the emergency cut out. There was one final flash of light and the archway turned silent again which was fortunate. The worst case failure scenario involved an unstable and uncontrollable black hole in the centre of Hogwarts.

The brunette sank to haunches and held back a couple of tears. What good was a triple first degree from the Academy if she couldn't put it to practical use? Her travels with the Doctor had exposed her lack of experience but she was much older now. She had survived a war with the Daleks but assembling this device was apparently too much. She suddenly felt like a helpless Time Tot struggling to put a few Roentgen blocks together.

From her slouched position on the floor, Romana could hear the sounds of battle and they were getting closer. Whatever defences had been placed in the Courtyard had evidently been breached by the Death Eaters. Harry, Ron and Ginny hadn't returned from the Room of Requirement either. With her device a failure and the Dark Lord's forces inside the castle, the need for a peaceful solution seemed a little irrelevant. Her friends could be in trouble and she needed to see if they were alright.

Romana was just about to stand up when a loud shriek pierced even the heavy wooden door of the hall. The Time Lady sprung into action, her blaster out of its holster and ready if needed. Stepping out into the entrance corridor the sounds of battle suddenly became significantly louder. Barely a second went by without the sound of spell fire reaching the Time Lady's ears.

Cautiously she moved towards the sound of the cry and immediately found the source. There was a fallen student and crouched over her was a burly figure in a torn black cloak. The creature appeared to be mauling away at the student like a wild animal. Romana didn't even give the beast a warning cry but the charging up of her sonic blaster appeared to catch its attention. It quickly spun its head to reveal the animalistic features of a werewolf. The beast's mouth was stained with blood and the substance dripped off its fang.

Righteous anger filled Romana and she quickly fired off two shots from her weapon. They were just stun bolts, albeit extremely powerful ones but the werewolf was catapulted several feet into the air before crashing into the great staircase. There was a horrific snapping sound when the beast slammed into the stone steps, it had impacted spine first with the unforgiving structure.

The Time Lady sprinted to the student's aid and immediately noticed it was Lavender Brown, one of Hermione's old roommates. Her human alter ego didn't have much time for the blonde but she wouldn't have wished this fate on anyone. Her face had been badly scratched and there were savage cuts along the width of her torso. The most concerning injury though was the puncture marks in her neck. Blood was haemorrhaging quickly out the wounds, pooling around the fallen teenager.

Romana crouched down and inspected the injuries and even with her limited knowledge of human medicine, she knew these wounds were fatal. Her knowledge of the magical world gained from her human self told her that werewolf wounds were cursed and unable to be treated through magical means. The rudimentary scientific breakthroughs in the medical field in this part of the twentieth century would probably make treating them beyond non magical methods too.

The brunette could see Lavender trying to move but her efforts were weak and feeble, "Don't move Lavender", Romana grasped the blonde's hand tightly, "just conserve your strength". The Time Lady had watched many of her fellow Time Lords die during the war. None were quite as young as Lavender though. She watched helplessly as her breathing became shallower until it eventually stopped altogether. The human's grip slackened on her hand until it fell limply to the ground, "I am so sorry Lavender", Romana whispered to the deceased girl.

As she stood up, Romana's anger flooded to the surface. Two words kept rolling around her mind, two words that were often spoken by her good friend, "No more", she growled and marched towards the stairs. On the way she passed the fallen werewolf who had taken Lavender's life. The creature's legs were horribly mangled from the landing and its spine appeared to be out of alignment. Fuelled by rage Romana pointed her blaster at the skull of the monster, her finger hovering near the trigger.

After a few seconds she slowly lowered her weapon, "No, a quick death is too good for you", she said coldly. With a sharp jab of her foot, she nudged the werewolf's injured back and rolled it down the steps. It landed at the bottom with a pathetic whimper, unable to move, "No one else is going to die tonight", she hissed and bounded up the steps.

Romana barely remembered the next minute or so. The half dozen Death Eaters that dared cross her path were dealt with swiftly as she continued her quest deeper into the castle. Somewhere on the fourth floor she heard the familiar sound of a magical duel. Moving her legs as quickly as possible the Time Lady soon came across the demented features of Bellatrix Lestrange who was engaged in a fear battle with her niece, Nymphadora Tonks. Magical duels hadn't been Hermione's strongest point but as Romana fished through her memories, something told her that Tonks was close to defeat.

A few seconds later she was proved correct as a purple curse caught Tonks on the lower leg, sending her sprawling to the ground, "Looks like I get my wish", the dark witch cackled, "one less poisoned branch on my family tree".

Not wasting a second Romana jumped into the room, her weapon firmly trained on Lestrange, "Step away from her", the Time Lady commanded fiercely, "now".

Confusion flashed across Bellatrix's face before she broke down in fits of laughter, "Oh it's you", she snorted, "for a moment I thought I was in trouble". Romana moved protectively in front of the fallen Tonks, she would do her damnedest to make sure that young Teddy wouldn't lose his mother tonight. "Look at you, fighting with a muggle weapon", Bellatrix continued", I always knew that your kind stole magic from proper witches and wizards. Something like that is so inferior to magic-".

"Tell that to Greyback", Romana was in no mood to hear a rant from Bellatrix Lestrange. Something like that would surely push her over the edge, "Assuming he can ever move again that is".

Bellatrix's confidence began to fade, filling Romana with immense satisfaction, "You lie", he cried, "a filthy creature like you couldn't defeat him so easily".

"Filthy creature", Romana sniffed, "our society stood for ten million years. Compared to that you lot are practically swinging through the trees still". She could feel Tonks's confusion but chose to ignore it, "You were there are Gringotts a couple of weeks ago", she paused, keeping her weapon focused on the dark witch, "well two weeks for you, a mere couple of hours for me". She inched as close as she dared, "Now that's something even your mighty magic can't do yet".

At that moment Romana realised she had no real escape plan. She was in a room with one of the most dangerous witches for centuries with an injured human to protect. Romana couldn't back down now, she would have to fight this one to the very end. Typically Bellatrix threw the first curse but Romana deftly ducked out the way.

Unfortunately Romana's blaster couldn't create a shield, if she was going to survive then she would have to use whatever cover was available. The space they were in appeared to be a disused classroom. Several desks had already been destroyed, presumably in the fight between Tonks and Bellatrix. Speaking of the metamorph, Romana had to get her out the line of fire as quickly as possible. She spun around and dragged the woman behind the teacher's desk at the front of the classroom, "Sorry for the roughness, can you move at all?" she asked Tonks.

"Possibly", Tonks winces as she moved into a crouch to test how much weight she could put on her leg.

"Good we're going to have to keep this moving", Romana stated, "and I need you to shield me as much as possible".

Tonks didn't get a chance to question the Time Lady as they were quickly on the move. Romana looked over the desk long enough to fire a shot at Bellatrix. It was off target but the powerful shockwave destroyed a desk, showering the witch with hundreds of splinters. Grasping Tonks by the hand, the Time Lady dragged her out the classroom and into the corridor. She had hoped that the first attack would be enough to dissuade Lestrange from continuing the duel but Romana was wrong. A couple of jets of light skimmed past her head, clearly Bellatrix had decided to make this personal, "Keep shielding", the brunette ordered.

"Why can't you do that yourself?" Tonks cried over the sound of shattering masonry.

"Really bad time for stories Tonks", Romana shouted back. She fired another shot towards Bellatrix but once again her aim was off. Even so the blaster was powerful enough to slow her down which was good because Tonks was beginning to struggle, "In there, quickly", she directed the metamorph towards a doorway.

Romana nudged the door open and the pair fell into what looked like the trophy room. The Time Lady cursed there was no way out of this room, "I'm sorry Hermione I can't carry on", Tonks wheezed, "just leave me and save yourself".

"Not going to happen", Romana replied firmly, "and its Romana, if we're going to die then you should at least call me by my real name".

"Your real name?" Tonks frowned.

"Yes really interesting story, if we survive then I'll tell you all about it", Romana smirked at the witch, "now isn't that an incentive to stay alive".

Moments later a frazzled looking Bellatrix stumbled into the room, "Well look who we have here", she chuckled, "finally caught up with you".

"Took your time, we've been here ages", Romana sniped back, "isn't that right Tonks". The metamorph gave a weak smile and nod, "shall we get on with this, I'm not in the mood for small talk with the likes of you".

Bellatrix frowned at the backhanded insult and readied her wand. Romana prepared to fire her blaster but they were both interrupted by a voice from the doorway, "Save some for me", the cultured female voice said. A feeling of dread washed over Romana and it proved to be well founded when the owner of the voice stepped through the door. The different face and witches robes might fool the two witches in the room but Romana knew that the Rani had decided to grace Hogwarts with her presence. The question now was; who's side was she on?

 _ **A/N -** Weird coincidence someone mentioned K-9 in a review and I already had a mention of the robotic dog in this chapter. If I recall there was technically two K-9's on Gallifrey at one point as the Doctor gifted K-9 Mk 1 (I think) to Leela and then Romana's (Mk II) when she returned from E-Space._

 _So you get a glimpse at an angry, vengeful Romana which carries over from her Time War incarnation. I'll be honest I haven't read/listened to much of the Big Finish material covering the Time War, therefore, everything covering that period will be part of my own AU. Basically I'm going to make it up as I go along. I am going to use Romana III voice actress (Juliet Landau) as a basis for her looks (see story picture) but the personality will be all mine._

 _It would be fun to see Romana III interact with her current incarnation...but that's something for the future._


	16. Dollhouse

_Chapter 16 – Dollhouse_

If there was one thing that Romana had learned during her time away from Gallifrey, it was that the universe tended to work in mysterious ways. The fact that she had been rescued from imprisonment by the Rani was probably a prime example of that idiom. Just a few hours ago Romana had tried to persuade the renegade Time Lady to help her protect Hogwarts. It might have been a long shot and she wasn't totally surprised when the Rani rejected her proposal. Now though the renegade was here and using her Morgana guise to infiltrate the castle. Knowing the Time Lady like she did, Romana suspected an ulterior motive.

Cautiously the younger Time Lady inched forward, making sure to keep her weapon ready. "Morgana", Romana decided to play along with whatever game the Rani was playing, "this is a surprise".

"Filth", Bellatrix spat at brunette, "how dare you speak to Morgana without permission". Romana resisted the urge to roll her eyes and watched curiously as the dark witch prostrated herself at the feet of the Rani, "Forgive the question Lady Morgana but is it really you?" Bellatrix asked reverently, a tone she usually saved for Lord Voldemort.

Romana crossed her arms in front of her chest and waited for the Rani's next move. The projection of Morgana flashed a small smirk in her direction before raising her head haughtily, "There is no forgiveness needed Madam Lestrange", 'Morgana' replied.

"You-you know my name", Bellatrix looked ready to explode with joy, drawing a soft snort from Romana.

"Of course I do", 'Morgana' stated, "surely you do not doubt my magical abilities". Romana struggled to keep a straight face as Bellatrix whaled like a scolded House Elf, begging 'Morgana' for forgiveness once again. The younger Time Lady suspected that the Rani used some basic telepathy to scan the mind of the witch. Whilst Time Lords were naturally telepathic with the ability to communicate and pick up on the thoughts of others, this ability usually only extended to their own species without some kind of physical contact. Some Time Lords, like the Master, had trained their psychic abilities further but since most never left Gallifrey, these people were few and far between, "Something amusing young one", 'Morgana' sniffed in Romana's direction.

The brunette sobered up immediately, still a little unsure how much of this was a game to the Rani. Unfortunately for Romana, she was keeping her mental shields very firmly in place, "Just never seen a grown human beg before", she shrugged, "it's a little undignified if you ask me".

Bellatrix instantly sprang to her feet with a nasty curse on her lip. 'Morgana' though waived a hand across the dark witch's body, "Let's not be hasty Madam Lestrange", she purred, "she could be a source of useful information".

"I doubt it", Bellatrix spat, "she's a filthy alien or so she claims".

"An alien", 'Morgana' raised an eyebrow in amusement, "as in a being from another planet?" Bellatrix nodded her head furiously, "How interesting, I never thought I'd see the day that an alien walked amongst humans". Romana felt 'Morgana's' eye roaming across her body, "Not a very convincing or flattering disguise".

"Better than your second Morgana dear", Romana replied sweetly, taking a slight dig at the older Time Lady's previous regenerations.

"Would someone please tell me what the hell is going on?" Tonks snapped at the three women. Romana cursed her luck, she had completely forgot that the metamorph was still in the room, "I knew you were bonkers Lestrange but I didn't think Hermione or whoever you are", the younger Time Lady let out a small sigh, "was insane too".

It was now Tonks's turn to stare down Bellatrix's wand, "Mind your tongue niece", she hissed, "please may I have the honour of finishing her my Lady?"

Romana's grip on her weapon tightened slightly, she wanted to believe that the Rani would step in but given the renegade's track record, she had to be prepared for anything, "Perhaps we could do this together", 'Morgana' smiled and produced her wand.

Bellatrix's eyes widened at the prospect of doing magic in the presence of 'Morgana'. Romana though was getting ready to intervene, surely the Rani wouldn't actually allow Tonks to die? "Don't worry dearie, I'll take good care of your mother and that disgusting creature you call a son", the dark witch cackled with glee.

Romana raised her blaster at the same moment Bellatrix drew her wand. Both of them were too slow though as 'Morgana' had used her own wand to hit Bellatrix with a bright beam of light. The dark witch dropped her wand and stared back in shock at 'Morgana'. Seconds later and to Romana's surprise, the dark witch began to physically shrink in size until she was no bigger than a doll, "Curious", 'Morgana' smiled, "I detected almost no sense of self in that human, almost like a child who had lost their mother".

The younger Time Lady gaped as 'Morgana' bent down and picked up the doll like witch. She recognised the weapon used on Bellatrix, "Did you just use a Tissue Compression Eliminator on her?"

The Rani allowed the holographic projection of Morgana to fade away, leaving behind the dark haired woman that Romana had met a few hours ago. "Indeed", she began, "the Master gave me the idea although don't tell him I said that, his ego is already big enough".

Romana heard about the Master's use of a TCE from the Doctor. It was one of his more widely used weapons and had almost become a calling card of the renegade Time Lord. There was one huge draw back to the device though, "But those things are deadly to organic matter", Romana cried.

"Ah now that is where you're wrong my dear President", the Rani smiled, "the Master's TCE kills because he designed it to". The dark haired Time Lady waived a long metal tube similar in design to Romana's sonic screwdriver, "This one merely compresses and immobilises tissue, placing it into stasis for want of a better term". She tossed the Bellatrix doll into the air, "My specimens wouldn't be of much use if they were dead, you can't learn too much from decomposing matter".

A chill ran up Romana's spine, the Rani's use of the plural when describing the tiny Bellatrix doll implied she had done this before. She didn't get a chance to comment further though as Tonks finally regained the ability to speak, "Can one of you tell me what's going on?"

Romana nervously scratched her head, she really didn't want to go through this every single time. Fortunately, or rather unfortunately, the Rani decided to answer for both of them, "Simple, we're both aliens and I just shrunk this human", she wiggled the Bellatrix doll between her fingers, "using a piece of technology which is far in advance of anything that will available on this primitive rock for the next couple of thousand years".

"I don't think that really answered the question Rani", Romana could feel a headache brewing.

Tonks looked between Romana and the Rani and the younger Time Lady could feel the scepticism rolling off the witch, "But you can't be alien", she finally answered, "you look so human".

"Please don't insult us", the Rani spat, "humans are blessed with a similar appearance to the Time Lords".

"But you did magic", Tonks still held on to the firm belief that Romana was still human, "how else could you've shrunk Lestrange and changed your appearance".

The Rani snorted, "Do all humans have the inability to grasp the truth when its thrust right in front of them?" Romana sighed, now she knew why the Rani never entered the political world of the Time Lords, her diplomacy skills were atrocious, "Tell me again Romana why does your moron of a friend like this planet again?"

The brunette rubbed her temples, trying to soothe her sore head, "What the Rani is trying to say is that our technology is far in advance of anything on Earth".

"Yeah well, maybe your friend should learn some manners", Tonks hissed in the Rani's direction.

"Oh she's not my friend, more like someone I keep around as entertainment", the Rani shrugged, "and it's not my fault that your tiny human mind can't comprehend what we're saying".

"Rani stop it", Romana hissed.

"I don't have a small brain", Tonks said defensive, "I could've finished near the top of my class if I wanted".

"Goodness, your parents must be so proud", the Rani rolled her eyes.

Tonks's hair flashed bright red and Romana knew that the Rani had crossed the line. The memory of Ted Tonks's death was still pretty raw for the metamorph, "Rani why don't you stand over there for a moment", Romana pointed at the other end of the trophy room. The renegade Time Lady stood defiantly for a couple of moments before reluctantly slinking away, "I'm sorry about the Rani", Romana apologised, "she must've failed the basic manners class at the Academy".

"Just keep her away from me", Tonks took a couple of deep breathes and her hair slowly morphed back into a calmer shade of purple. "Say I believe this alien business for a moment", she continued, "why did you bring her? Surely one of you lot must have better manners than her?"

Romana's mood darkened for a moment, the Master probably would've killed everyone by now or at least forced them into one of his insane schemes. The only other available Time Lord, well his patience and tolerance depended on his incarnation. "Sadly not", Romana sighed, "not too many Time Lords left I'm afraid". A heavy mood fell over the room, even the Rani felt a little subdued through the mental connection between the Time Ladies, "That's a story for another day I'm afraid".

"It really is true", Tonks sighed, "I'm pretty good at telling when someone's lying, little Auror trick I've picked up over the years". Romana nodded sadly in confirmation, "Does anyone else know?"

"Harry and Ron, I was with them when my true self was released" Tonks looked like she wanted to ask a question, "long story, not really one to tell in the middle of a battle". Tonks huffed but indicated for the Time Lady to continue, "Ginny knows, she stumbled into my ship-".

"That'll teach you for leaving it unlocked", the Rani chipped in from the other side of the room.

Romana chewed on her lip, choosing to ignore her fellow Time Lady, "Luna knows too, not really sure how, she's either really perceptive or a really good guesser".

"And now me", Tonks allowed herself a small grin, "I still don't like your colleague or whatever she is to you". Romana could feel the Rani's annoyance but allowed it to pass, the renegade could do with taking down a few pegs, "I'm really not happy about that tiny brain comment either".

The younger Time Lady rubbed her hands together, trying to think of the best way to phrase her response, "Technically in comparison to Time Lords, human do have small-".

"Hilariously small", the Rani called out.

"Thank you Rani", Romana sighed, completely exasperated by the dark haired woman, "Time Lords live much longer so we need larger brains to cope with all the additional memories we acquire". That wasn't completely true but it was the simplest response Romana could give without insulting Tonks further.

"How touching", the Rani sniffed as she approaching the pair, "I've wasted enough time listening to this. I'm taking my samples and returning to my TARDIS before I lose precious brain cells from being in close proximity to humans".

Tonks bravely stepped in front of the Rani, blocking her only exit, "There one thing I don't get", the older Time Lady raised an eyebrow but kept the sarcastic response at bay, "alright there's lots of things but I'm talking about your samples". Romana was wondering that herself, unfortunately she had a fairly good idea what the Rani was doing, "Exactly what are you collection and for what purpose?"

"I don't think I need to explain my research to a mere human", the Rani replied stiffly.

"Then answer me Rani", Romana ordered the dark haired woman.

"Are you going to stop me Madam President", the Rani chuckled. Romana thought about this for a moment, if she didn't like what the Rani was up to, would she really stop her? There were more important things at stake than a renegade Time Lady and her science experiments. "If you must know, I've decided to conduct further research into _homo magis._ That's what I've labelled humans with the DNA mutation".

Tonks looked confused, "What's that got to do with the dolls?"

"They're not dolls Tonks", Romana had noticed some time ago that the Rani had a black leather bag across one shoulder. She quickly snatched the bag before the older Time Lady could stop her, "Augustus Rookwood", she pulled out one figure, "Pius Thicknessee, one of the Lestrange brothers, Fenrir Greyback-".

"Yes he was quite the mess when I found him", the Rani replied gleefully, "an genuine werewolf, think of all the hours I can spent vivisecting his body. Perhaps I can find a way to reattach his spinal cord in the process".

Romana continued to look through the bag, all the while feeling Tonks flash between curiosity and disgust at the Rani's proposed actions. The younger Time Lady noticed that all the captured human were Death Eaters which left her in a moral dilemma. Everyone in the bag was likely wanted for several counts of murder and if handed over, would likely face life in Azkaban or even execution but did that give her the right to hand them over to a maniacal scientist? Romana felt like she couldn't decide for humanity, "Tonks, the Rani has capture nearly a dozen Death Eaters, are you really sorry to see them whisked away?"

"Well no but I wouldn't want them cut up either", Tonks blanched, "is this how all Time Lords operate?"

"Only her", Romana pointed at the Rani, "I'm not keen on it either but can you honestly say they they'd be treated worse than if they were in Azkaban?" Romana knew it was a cheap shot but that place was the living definition of hell. At least the Rani would keep them in decent condition, if only to experiment on them for longer. The younger Time Lady took the Auror's lack of response as a tacit agreement, "I saw Fenrir Greyback maul a teenager to death, can you think of a more suitable punishment for someone like him?"

Tonks sighed in defeat, "Fine but if anyone asks, I have no idea what happened to them".

"Humans, so emotionally driven", the Rani chuckled, "maybe I can find a way to-".

"I said I don't want to know", Tonks reaffirmed, "maybe you can find out if generations of interbreeding drove some of them crazy".

The Rani's eyes lit up like a Christmas, "Limited genetic pool and mental instability", she took the bag back from Romana, "I like you", she smiled at Tonks, "not many humans get that honour". The Auror smiled tightly but made no further comment, "I'm surprised at you Madam President, what would the Doctor say if he witnessed this?"

"The Doctor isn't the boss of me", Romana snapped, a hint of her previous regeneration sneaking through, "plus I could really use your help with something".

The older Time Lady smiled darkly, "Another favour Lady Romana, that's two you owe me. I take it this has something to do with the powerful dimensional portal on the ground level?" Romana wondered how the Rani knew that but then realised she probably noticed some interference when she landed her TARDIS, "Well come on then, no time like the present".

As the Rani marched out the trophy room, Tonks turned to Romana, "Interesting person", the Time Lady was impassive, that was probably an understated description of the Rani. The pair walked out the room together and into the now quiet corridor, "Two questions for you, exactly how old are you?"

"Four hundred and thirteen", Romana stated, "give or take a year or so".

"Wow, I really need to learn your beauty secrets". Romana blushed slightly and smiled in response, "Also why did she keep calling you Madam President".

"I was President of our planet at one point", the Time Lady replied, "not that the Rani really followed my orders, always been a bit of a loose cannon". Tonks chuckled softly, completely unaware that would the final time she would smile that day.


	17. Knockin' On Heaven's Door

_Chapter 17 – Knockin' On Heaven's Door_

On the way back to the Great Hall, Tonks had parted company from Romana and the Rani in an attempt to find her husband. The battle seemed to be reaching an impasse of sorts. Both sides were evenly matched, indirectly thanks to the renegade Time Lady who had removed some of the stronger Death Eaters from the battlefield. Romana would've thanks her but there was no way that the Rani had done it to consciously help the humans inside the castle.

Avoiding any further incidents the two Time Ladies entered the Hall. The Rani immediately begun to inspect the metal archway just inside the door, "Multi dimensional gateway completely with stable chrono controls", for a brief moment Romana though the Rani sounded impressed. That moment quickly passed though, "Mechanically engineering is so cold, very binary, either working or not", she continued.

"I didn't ask for your opinion on my creation", Romana snapped, "can you get it working?"

"You're very impatient in this regeneration", the Rani answered without looking directly at Romana, "not as bad as the last one mind you". Romana huffed and crossed her arms in front of her chest, her war time incarnation could be a nasty piece of work if you got on her bad side. She hoped those days were behind her but every now and then she felt the infamous War Queen begin to surface. Romana could only image how Harry and the others would've reacted if that was the version they met first.

Romana had grown tired of verbally sparring with the Rani and quietly allowed her to work on the device. The Time Lady still hadn't seen Harry, Ron or Ginny during their trip through the castle. She hadn't really seen too many people if she was honest. Most of the corridors the alien women traversed had been desolate, expect for piles of fallen rubble. Even the body of Lavender Brown had been moved from the entrance hall, making Romana wonder who was responsible.

The Time Lady's quiet revere was interrupted by the doors of the hall flying open and a battering looking group of teenagers stumbling in. Harry was in front, looking a little battered around the arms and face. Close behind was Ron sporting a rather large burn on his forearm along with patches of singed hair on his head. Finally there was Ginny who dumped a pile of burned fabric onto the floor which vaguely looked like school robes. The youngest Weasley was the biggest concern though, her eyes were red and puffed like she had recently been crying, "What happened?" Romana asked gravely.

"We got it", Harry sighed, "but Crabbe's dead". Romana wasn't initially sure how to react to that, her human memories of Vincent Crabbe weren't particularly pleasant, "Unleashed a curse that he couldn't control", Harry continued, "luckily for us he destroyed the Horcrux and most of the Room of Requirement".

"Sums up human stupidity right there", the Rani scoffed after eavesdropping on their conversation.

Ron instantly recognised the cold voice, "You!" he cried in the Rani's direction, "what the hell are you doing here?"

"Helping", the renegade replied simply, "no need to thank me", she took a brief pause from the computer terminal to think for a moment, "on seconds thoughts you should really thank me for fixing your friend's mistake".

Romana grumbled under her breath but her internal seething was interrupted by Ginny, "I recognise you", the teen began, "you were there when Fred got blasted into that wall". She marched towards and grabbed the Rani's coat, "What the hell did you do to him?" she demanded with tears forming in her eyes.

"Take you hands off me", the Rani cried and forcefully pushed Ginny away and into her brother. Ron looked murderous at the manhandling of his baby sister but was reluctant to brandish his wand in the Time Lady's direction. Romana wondered whether to interfere, fearful of how violently the Rani would react. Whilst she wasn't known to be a cold blooded murderer like the Master, the Rani placed very little value on human life. She wouldn't put it past the Time Lady to capture Ron for her little experiments.

To her surprise once the Rani calmed down her expression shifted into a curious stare at the Weasley siblings, "Interesting, I assume you're referring to that red head from the upper levels". She inched forward to inspect the pair closer, "Identical hair shades, I know that's very common in humans with their ridiculously low number of chromosomes but this is almost unheard of in the field of biology". Romana didn't like the maniacal glint in the Rani's eye on bit, "Maybe the magic gene renders _homo magis_ more susceptible to this phenomena", the Rani continued gleefully, "oh the hours I could spend studying your DNA".

"Rani stop it", Romana hissed in an attempt to reign in the renegade Time Lady, "you've got plenty of samples to work on and I forbid you from collecting any more".

Something swirled between the Time Ladies as Romana's voice bounced off the high ceiling. Having Presidential authority on Gallifrey wasn't just limited to words and promises. The vortex itself recognised their authority and it in extreme cases it could bend the will of someone to do the Presidents bidding. Romana had never done that herself but just having the desire to be obeyed could be enough to keep rebel Time Lords in order. Despite Rassilon ousting her from power, the vortex still recognised her as the rightful President of Gallifrey. Since there was never going to be another election this power would stay with her until the day she died.

The Rani looked a little uncomfortable, she could feel the power of the vortex attempting to enact the will of the President. It took Romana a few moments to realise that she had invoked this long forgotten power and slowly began to reign it in, "As you desire Madam President", the Rani answered in a hollow voice.

"Rani I'm sorry", Romana pleaded with her fellow Time Lady, "I didn't realise what I was doing".

An uncomfortable silence descended on the Hall until the Rani spoke again, "Apologies are a sign of weakness Romana", she answered and continued working on the archway.

Knowing that the Rani would need some time to regain her pride, Romana turned her attention to the confused looking teens, "What was that all about?" Harry asked.

"Time Lord stuff", Romana sighed, "there's an archaic power that comes with the office of President which could technically enable me to force my will on my fellow Time Lords, probably built into the office by Rassilon himself before his death". Sensing that she was confusing the humans she decided to try and move on, "The Rani's sulking because I could make her do whatever I wanted".

"Are you going to?" Ron interrupted.

"Of course not", Romana sounded almost offended, "I'm not a monster". She then turned to Ginny, "Our visitor is a fellow Time Lady, known as the Rani", she began, "these two have met her before and I'll give you the same warning as I did to them Ginny". Romana paused and looked the yong red head directly in the eyes, "Use extreme caution, she is extremely dangerous".

Ginny paled as the realisation that she had manhandled a very dangerous woman slowly sunk in. With the aforementioned Rani sulking near the archway controls, Romana finally had a chance to process the conversation between the teenage witch and the renegade Time Lady, "What happened?" she asked slowly, "you mentioned Fred's name". The teens went silent, a glum look shared between them, "Will someone please tell me what happened", she demanded firmly.

Once again the doors burst open, only this time it wasn't just a few people coming in, it looked like the entire population of the castle had arrived. Line after line of witches and wizards scrambled inside, most of them carrying makeshift stretchers with the sick and injured. It wasn't just the injured though, a couple of dozen stretchers came through with a white sheet pulled all the way over the body. The empty feeling of multiple time lines suddenly terminated weighted heavily on Romana. Even the usually passive Rani looked uncomfortable as the procession of bodies filed passed.

Romana then spotted Tonks shuffling next to a stretcher that was being carried by a grim looking Bill Weasley and Kingsley Shacklebolt. The lank brown hair on the metamorph and the damp tear tracks on her grimy face told the Time Lady exactly who they were carrying. Her husband and father of her child, Remus Lupin, hadn't made it. Forlornly Romana wondered if rescuing Tonks from her demented Aunt had been worth it if she was only going to experience the horrific pain of losing her. She tried to focus her thoughts on Teddy Lupin, at least he would have one surviving parent.

Next through the door came another stretcher, this one being carried by Arthur and Percy Weasley. A frantic Molly Weasley followed, looking painfully close to a full breakdown. George Weasley kept pace with his father and older brother, never once taking his eyes off the stretcher. This one didn't have a sheet, giving Romana full view of the serene looking face of Fred Weasley, a ghost of smile still on his lips, "Got caught up in a blast caused by Rookwood", Ron blankly stated, "whole wall nearly came down on top of him".

The Time Lady sighed, another good human lost. Another person she had failed to save tonight. As the stretcher passed she felt something emanating off Fred's body, a faint time line, "He's still alive", she gasped.

"Probably wouldn't have been", Ginny added, "if your friend hadn't interfered, Fred probably would've taken the hit full in the face". Romana glanced over towards the Rani who was doing a very good job at pretending to ignore the conversation. Romana suspected that the renegade hadn't saved Fred's life out the kindness of her hearts but she would still have her eternal gratitude.

Her primary concern was that Fred's prognosis didn't feel great. A faint time line like his usual meant very low brain activity. Without brain activity, a subject wasn't able to create possible and potential futures. Knowing that she had to get a closer look, Romana cautiously followed after the Weasley procession. On the way she stopped next to the Rani, "Thank you", she began, "for saving Fred's life".

There was a tense silence before the Rani responded, "I didn't do it to earn your gratitude", she sniffed, "he was using magic at the time I froze him. Keeping him stored in this state will only help my research".

Romana nodded she suspected that was the case but perhaps this was a chance to reach out to the renegade, "You still did a good thing, I know that his family are grateful". The Rani glanced up, aiming her best unimpressed look at the former President, "Come on Rani I know you're not as cold and unfeeling as this image you like to project", Romana pleaded, "I'm not expecting you to become a Saint but would flashing a smile really kill you?" For a faint second the Rani looked like she was going to comply but her cold mask slipped comfortably back into place. Romana gently shook her head, at least she could say that she tried.

Leaving her fellow Time Lady behind she caught up with Harry and the other Weasley's. Everyone except George were huddled together on one side but the other half of the Weasley Twins refused to leave his brothers side. Romana carefully crouched down next to George, gently patting him on the knee, "George I am so sorry", she said softly. George didn't respond, he merely stared blankly at his fallen twin, "I'm going to examine Fred", she continued, "I can't promise I can help him but I can promise that my examination won't hurt".

George barely twitched in acknowledgement which Romana took as his passive acceptance of her offer. Slowly pulling out her sonic screwdriver, Romana began to carefully scan Fred's life signs. He had suffered extensive internal injuries but the Time Lady was confident that a skilled healer like Madam Pomfrey could heal those fairly quickly. Her real concern was the low levels of activity in his brain. Either the blasting curse or the falling debris had inflicted a serious brain injury. Magic could work miracles but even Romana was sceptical that Madam Pomfrey could reverse the damage caused.

Just as Romana was racking her brain to figure out a solution, a sharp voice pulled her back into the room, "Hermione what are you doing?" Mrs Weasley asked, "What's that thing in your hand?"

Romana cursed her luck but then again, using her screwdriver in full view of the hall was asking for trouble. Mentally she thought about her options, continue the lie and pretend to still be Hermione or tell everyone the truth. Deep down Romana knew there was only one option, she was extremely tired to lying, "It's a sonic screwdriver", she stated.

"I didn't realise muggles had such a thing as a sonic screwdriver", Mr Weasley frowned in confusion, "why would you want to make a screwdriver sonic?"

"It's not a muggle invention Mr Weasley", Romana shrugged, "in fact it's not even a human invention". She looked over towards Harry, Ron and Ginny. All three of them had a look which questioned whether this was a good idea. Romana agreed with them in part but her secret was leaking out and it was time to reveal everything before it came out at the worst possible time. "The sonic screwdriver was invented thousands of years into your future on a far distant planet", she added.

"Distant planet" Bill began, "you mean an alien planet?" Romana nodded slowly, "why would you have an alien device?"

"Because I am one", Romana said firmly. Judging by the stunned looks on everyone faces, the direct approach maybe wasn't the best idea.


	18. Can't Repeat

_Chapter 18 – Can't Repeat  
_

All of the air felt like it had been sucked out of the Great Hall following Romana's declaration. For a few moments the Time Lady stood dead still, cautious that an uninformed witch or wizard would draw their wand. There was one thing Romana knew about the human race, they were naturally suspicious of anything different from them. The Doctor had told her a few stories of an organisation known as UNIT, a trigger happy military organisation who when faced with the unusual would often choose to blast it off the face of the Earth.

The wizarding world shared that trait with ordinary muggles, if anything they were more xenophobic. Creatures such as vampires, centaurs and werewolves were looked upon with suspicion and often fear. The current war was based upon outdated notions of superior blood, a ridiculous option Romana thought. She hoped that humanity would grow out of this primal fear but based judging by the Doctor's stories, that never really happened.

Even though the group in the hall were the so called light side, many of them shared the same discriminatory views as the Death Eaters they battled. Whilst they never openly stated their opinions, their actions often gave them away. How they would react to an alien from another world was anyone's guess, "Hermione dear, I don't understand what you're saying", Mrs Weasley mumbled.

Stage one; Denial. Romana recognised that from her psychology training at the Academy. She had to try and ease them through this stage, she really didn't fancy having to deal with a group of angry wizards. "Hermione Granger was my human identity", she began, "I escaped a Great War on my home planet and I was then disguised as a human. The disguise was so good that even I forgot who I really was".

Romana studied the mixture of looks, no one was outright rejecting her notion yet which was a good sign. "When Harry, Ron and I escaped capture at Malfoy Manor, my true heritage was released". She reached into her pocket, pulling out the ornately carved pocket watch which housed her real identity. "The Chameleon Arch", she displayed the watch, "my true personality and biology was stored in here".

"I remember seeing that watch", Bill muttered, "you said it was broken and practically useless".

"A side effect of the Chameleon Arch", Romana stated, "the watch hid its true purpose until the time was right for it to be opened".

Silence fell on the room and Romana allowed the information to sink in. She could feel Harry and Ron moving up behind her in an attempt to prove some back up. The Time Lady could feel the confusion amongst the gather witches and wizards. Some felt a little more accepting than others, mostly the teenaged magical. Romana was slightly surprised by this, she would've thought that Hermione's peers would've been more devastated by her loss. "So if you're not Hermione", Kingsley asked cautiously, "who are you really?"

Holding her head high the alien woman replied proudly, "Romanadvoratrelundar or Romana for short, Time Lady from the planet Gallifrey".

"Hell of a name", the dark skinned Auror grunted, "tell us Romana, do you mean us harm?"

Resisting the urge to snap at the Auror, he was only reacting in typical human fashion after all, Romana continued, "Not at all, in fact I have been trying to help you defeat the Dark Lord Voldemort". Ignoring the shudder from the gathered crowd she planned to bring the Rani into the conversation at this point but when she looked around, the dark haired Time Lady had disappeared. Grumbling to herself she decided to soldier on alone, "The metal arch at the entrance to this room will remove the threat of Voldemort permanently, once it's fully operational of course".

"Muggle technology", Mrs Weasley snorted, "you're not going to be able to stop You-Know-Who with that". Annoyance bubbled within Romana's chest, the magical community were so ignorant of the level of technology the rest of humanity held it was almost ridiculous. Countries around the world had the power to level cities with a single bomb. No amount of magic would be able to repel an atomic bomb yet the wizarding world insisted on looking down on Muggles. "What can we do to bring Hermione back?" Mrs Weasley's sudden question broke Romana out of her thoughts.

Stage three; Bargaining. It seemed that Mrs Weasley had skipped the anger stage of grief and moved on to trying to bargain for Hermione's return. Romana had to remind herself that this was all part of the grieving process and not to take anything personally. That was easier said than done though, "I'm sorry Mrs Weasley but that isn't possible", Romana replied softly.

"The process wouldn't be able to return Hermione, not with her original memories", Ron chipped in much to Romana's gratitude, "she could be turned human again but she wouldn't be the Hermione we knew".

Instead of a quiet nod of acceptance, Mrs Weasley rounded on her son, "Has she done some weird alien magic on your Ronald", the matriarch of the Weasley family snapped, "get away from her this instant".

Stage two; Anger. It had made a late appearance but there was definitely much anger in the room. Most of it seemed to be coming from Ron, "Mum she has done more to help us stop Voldemort in the last few hours than most of you have in your entire lives". Romana looked wide eyes at the teen, that was certainly a bold statement and one which would inflame tensions in the room further. "She negotiated with the Goblins, helped us escape Malfoy Manor, destroyed something vitally important to Voldemort and taken us into space".

Romana was grateful to Ron but she really wished he had stopped talking. She watched carefully as Kingsley slowly produced his wand, her hand automatically moving towards her sonic blaster, "Perhaps we should test for any mind altering spells", he ignored Ron's cries of protest and continued, "you have to admit Ron that all this sounds a little farfetched".

"Then come outside and see Romana's TARDIS, that should confirm everything", Harry added.

"Not you too Harry", Romana heard Mrs Weasley mumble under her breath, "what exactly is a TARDIS?"

"My ship", Romana replied shortly, her patience growing ever thinner with the gathered crowd. Voldemort was getting ready to attack and they were standing around bickering. More importantly she was losing valuable time that she could've spent working on her device, "It stands for Time and Relative Dimensions in Space".

"It travels through time and space, we've been to a planet in the distant future", Ron added excitedly, which might not have been the best course of action.

"A time machine, really", Tonks snorted, leaving her husband's side for the first time, "then go back and change all this".

Romana sighed, "I can't do that", she stated regretfully, "the resulting paradox would tear the universe apart".

"Really?" the metamorph sniffed, "you can't do it or you won't do it? What gives you the right to decide what's best for us?"

"Four hundred years experience and knowledge of the time space continuum", Romana replied firmly. She could understand why Tonks was angry, she had just lost her husband and seen many other people she cared about severely injured or worse, "I understand you're upset-"

"Upset!" Tonks shrieked, "my husband is dead and one of the brightest witches in centuries has ceased to exist only to replaced by you". Romana frowned, her shoulders raised and ready for a verbal scrap, "Tell us what you've lost oh mighty Lady of Time".

Romana's simmering annoyance boiled over, if these humans wanted to know what she had lost then she would tell them, "My planet, my people and my entire way of life", she stated with a quiet yet angry whisper. "Billions of Time Lords and Ladies gone in one flash of light, can your tiny and pathetic human brains begin to comprehend that", her voice reached a bitter crescendo. "Do you know how many children were on Gallifrey on the day it was destroyed? Two point four seven billion".

A shocked gasp from somewhere in the crowd wasn't enough to interrupt Romana's angry tirade, "The greatest civilisation in history wiped out in an instant, leaving me stuck with you bungling apes". Romana didn't truly hate humanity but she wasn't a huge fan like the Doctor was. She could see some of their good aspects but on days like today, the negatives were too great to ignore, "My people died to give lesser species like you a chance to live, now I'm wondering why they bothered".

Spinning quickly on her heel, Romana marched out the Great Hall making sure to slam the door on her way. She could feel a few warm tears in the corner of her eye, the pain of Gallifrey's loss too much to bear. Stepping to her TARDIS, Romana leaned on the console for support. There was so much anger inside her, she was angry at Gallifrey's destruction, angry at the unnecessary loss of life today and resentful towards the close minded attitudes of the humans in her presence.

Most of her anger was directed towards herself though, partially for losing her temper so easily a few moments ago but also for her leadership during the Time War. Gallifrey and its residents had been her responsibility and she had led them into oblivion. The Daleks did need confronting and war was probably inevitable but if perhaps her preparations had been better, her home planet would still exist. True, Rassilon had usurped her position and oversaw the final downfall but the end was in sigh long before then. Maybe living amongst humans and travelling alone was her penance for her poor leadership.

"Romana", Harry's voice pierced her thoughts. She quickly sniffed back her tears and subtly wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeve. Turning around she spotted Harry, Ron, Ginny, Luna and Neville entering the TARDIS. The latter was looking around the alien ship in awe whereas it was old hat for the others, "We're sorry about everyone else".

"That's sweet of you Harry but I'm just at fault", Romana shrugged, "they were right to be suspicious, especially at a time of war. I should've done more to keep my temper under control".

"It's alright to be angry sometimes", Ginny added, "you've lost a lot, it's understandable that you would feel a little angry".

Romana sighed, "Yes but emotional outbursts are such a-".

"Human reaction", Ron smirked, forcing a small chuckle from Romana. "I don't pretend to understand much about any of this but I don't believe humans and Time Lords are that different". Romana stood back and thought about that for a moment, perhaps Ron was right. Her species did share more in common with humans than just an outward appearance. They might be more technologically advanced than humanity and had control over much of their emotional responses but they were still there under the surface. Time Lords weren't robots or Cybermen after all, they felt pain, anger, sadness and well as joy, pride and excitement. They just chose not to be a slave to those emotions.

Looking around the room, she could feel the loyalty from the teens in the room all aimed in her direction. It was strange, standing inside her TARDIS with five young humans who had restored her faith in humanity with just a few sentences. Perhaps there was hope for the wizarding world's future, "So what's the plan", Neville said to no one in particular.

"Well we've already destroyed five of Voldemort's Horcruxes", Romana replied, drawing a small gasp from Neville, "oh yes we haven't told you about those yet, sorry it's been a very long day". She looked over towards Luna who didn't looked shocked in the slightest, "You don't seem surprised Luna?"

The blonde haired Ravenclaw shrugged, "It's a logical answer to the question of his immortality". A ghost of a smile flashed across Romana's face, she was growing to like Luna more with every passing second.

"We know the snake is probably with Voldemort", Harry continued, "but we have absolutely no idea what the final one is".

Romana slowly looked towards Harry, trying to keep a painfully sad look from her face. She mostly succeeded, although she felt Luna's curious gaze aimed firmly in her direction. Romana had figured out the mystery of the final Hocrux a long time ago. Strictly speaking that wasn't true, Hermione had actually been the one of figure it out. Her human self had been carrying around that secret for a long time.

The Time Lady suspected that Harry also had a vague idea that he was the final Horcrux a while ago, he was just living in denial. If Romana's plan worked though, the Horcrux inside Harry wouldn't be an immediate problem. They could work together to remove it from his body without killing him in the process. What the group inside the TARDIS didn't know was that something was watching them very closely and getting ready to strike.


	19. Snakes On A TARDIS

_**A/N –**_ _There seemed to be a problem with FF last week notifying people of updates so you might need to go back and read Chapter 18 first to catch up._

 _Chapter 19 – Snakes On A TARDIS_

Wondering idly around the TARDIS console, Romana couldn't help but marvel at the activity from the teen witches and wizards. The five of them were carefully plotting how to retrieve Nagini from Voldemort's side. Various ideas had been instantly rejected due to their improbability or sheer stupidity. Others such as using the TARDIS to materialise near the snake were also removed from the list. Romana didn't want to risk one of the last relics of Gallifrey falling into the hands of a madman. The chances of Voldemort actually working the ship were remote but she didn't want to take the risk.

Finally the only real option to them was to draw Voldemort directly into the castle. It wasn't the ideal plan but in their mind, it was unlikely that the Dark Lord would allow Nagini to wonder free. Inviting the most fearsome Dark Lord in centuries into your sanctuary might not be the smartest plan but it was the most logical.

Romana had left most of the strategic planning to Ron, mainly because the youngest Weasley son had an aptitude for the subject. The near loss of his older brother Fred had also ignited a fire which the Time Lady wanted put towards a useful purpose. The last thing she needed was Ron running off on a misguided attempt at vengeance. "So that's the plan", Ron announced to the group, "we get Harry to issue an open challenge to Voldemort".

"Make sure to cite the rite of magical conquest", Neville added, "the Sacred Twenty Eight believed heavily in that. If he wants to save face with the Death Eaters he'd have no choice but to accept".

The Time Lady nodded at Neville suggestion, she was impressed with the leadership and confidence that the teen had acquired in the last year, "Happy with that plan Romana?" Ron asked.

"Honestly I think it's ridiculous and suicidal", the Time Lady snorted, "right up our street really", she added with a small grin. She moved towards the TARDIS door which was slightly ajar. Pulling the door shut, the Time Lady grabbed the Sword of Gryffindor which had been propped up against the wall, "This should be able to destroy the Horcrux within the snake", she added.

"Not an ideal weapon", Ron carefully took the sword from the Time Lady, "we'd have to allow Nagini to get really close. Dunno about you but I don't want to be staring down the pointy end of that bloody great snake". The red head went to hand the weapon to Harry but Neville confidently held out his hand. Ron cast a quick glance over to Harry who nodded gently, "Rather you than me mate", Ron added.

Neville carefully inspected the sword, testing its weight, "Gran made me take fencing lessons when I was younger, said it was only right that a young Lord learned the noble art of swordsmanship".

Romana frowned slightly, recalling the human memories that lay deep within her brain. Neville Longbottom was many things but graceful certainly wasn't one of them. In fact she couldn't think of anything more frightening than Neville wielding a sharp sword, "Oh yeah, how did that go?" Ginny vocalised the Time Lady's mental question.

"Could've been worse", Neville shrugged with an embarrassed expression, "Maybe one day I'll be able to pay to repair the damaged portraits". Romana rolled her eyes, which sounded like the Neville she knew, "Still have all my limbs though", he added with a sheepish grin.

"Humans, always looking on the bright side", Romana snorted, "we can use the TARDIS to broadcast the signal".

Harry nodded slowly but there was a dark look behind his eyes. Romana suspected that the teen was thinking about the final Horcrux. The Time Lady didn't know an awful lot about the subject but it seemed pretty clear that to destroy a Horcrux, the vessel had to be totally destroyed. In the case of a living Horcrux, that could only mean the death of the vessel. This was purely conjecture though until she had a chance to do more research, "I promise you Harry, I will find a way to eliminate the last Horcrux", she stated firmly.

The dark haired wizard looked at her curiously, "You know?" Romana nodded in confirmation, "how long?" he asked darkly.

"Hermione figured it out a while ago", Romana began, "don't think too badly of her, would you have liked to break that piece of news to someone?" Harry appeared to grumble and reluctantly back down, "If there is another way I'll find it, we can go to The Library there's bound to be something there".

"Didn't Hermione already look there?" Harry asked.

"I'm not talking about the school library, I'm talking about The Library", Romana replied, "it's a planet sized library built in the Fiftieth Century holding every book ever written". Harry smiled broadly before breaking into a small laugh, "Yes I know, even now I'm trying to persuade you to go to the library".

"Erm sorry we're a little lost", Ron interjected, "can someone fill us in".

Romana paused, wondering if now was the right time to tell everyone that Harry was a living Horcrux. As she contemplated this, she heard a shuffling sound at the back of the console room. Looking around she noticed a puzzled expression on Ginny's face, "Did you hear that too?"

"If you mean that scratching, hissing noise then yes", the red head responded. Another frowned passed across her face, "Sounds like someone is saying trapped over and over again", she added.

"Now that you mention it", Ron added with a concerned voice, "I can hear that too".

Romana quickly punched a few commands into the TARDIS console to scan for human life forms. It was unlikely that anyone had infiltrated the TARDIS without her knowledge but she wanted to rule it out. With the Rani still wondering around the castle, she wouldn't put it past the renegade Time Lady to unlock the TARDIS to grant anyone access. "Five human life signs", Romana commented, "and one Time Lady, just as it should be", she read from the screen.

"What about something smaller", Harry commented, "I've suddenly got a very bad feeling", he added with a shudder.

The Time Lady looked curiously at the teen but acquiesced to his demand. Scanning for all forms of know life would take some time though, however, her search would soon prove unnecessary, "I believe I have found the source of the strange noise", Luna pointed towards the TARDIS door. Attempting to slither through the door was possibly the largest snake Romana had ever seen, "I do believe we have wasted the last few minutes planning", the blonde added airily.

Ignoring the accurate yet understated comments of the Ravenclaw, Romana cursed her luck. Having the snake wonder into the TARDIS was a bonus but a hindrance. Knowing the snake's connection to Voldemort it was highly likely that it had relayed much of their plan to the Dark Lord. In addition she couldn't risk discharging her sonic blaster inside the TARDIS. The risk of damaging a vital system was too great, "Everyone stay perfectly still", Romana whispered to the group.

The whisper wasn't quiet enough though as Nagini's head quickly snapped around, _"I have been discovered",_ the beast hissed in perfect English and began to advance on the group. Romana watched wide eyed as the great beast decided that attack was its best defence and lunged towards the party.

The assembled teens and Time Lady leapt out the way of the gaping jaws of the serpent and Nagini slammed head first into the side of the console. Everyone slowly spread out, backing away from the console and towards the outer wall. Romana spotted the wizards and witches immediately reaching for their wands, "Don't do that", she cried in desperation, "do you have any idea what could happen if a stray curse hit a delicate piece of eleven dimensional engineering?"

"Something bad I'm assuming", Harry responded but refused to lower his wand. Nagini too seemed to have caught onto the hesitancy of the magicals to attack. The giant serpent cautiously slithered around the console, using it as a form of sanctuary, "We can't keep staring at it for hours", the dark haired wizard reasoned, "and if we let it get away then who knows if we'd ever see it again".

Romana had to agree with Harry, this serendipitous event was too good to pass up. The TARDIS did come equipped with containment fields but they could only be activated from the console. Cautiously the Time Lady stepped forward, inching closer to the console, Nagini spotted the movement though and hissing angrily at the alien woman. With the direct approach out, Romana decided to try something different, "I know what Voldemort did to you", she attempted to reason with the snake, "come along quietly and I can remove his taint from your body".

Nagini cocked her head towards the Time Lady, something which Romana took as curiosity rather than as a threat, " _You are a speaker"_ , she hissed in response.

"You can speak snake?" Ginny asked the Time Lady, "hang on, I understood that too".

"TARDIS translation circuit", Romana answered the witch, "can translate any language including parseltongue apparently", she added with a shrug, "strange, I didn't know the Time Lords were aware of the language of snakes".

" _Strange words",_ Nagini interrupted the Time Lady's verbal musing, _"you must be the off worlder my Master told me about"._

Romana nodded, "That's right, so you know I can follow through on my offer". Taking another couple of cautious steps, the Time Lady opened her arms in a welcoming gesture, "You could be returned to the wild or taken to any planet of your choosing", she added, "I hear there is a planet where snakes are worshipped as Gods".

For a few tense seconds neither snake nor Time Lady moved a muscle. Romana couldn't get any mental sense from the reptile due to its inferior biology so she hoped that the creature was genuinely considering its options. " _I live to serve my Master, I have no other purpose",_ Nagini finally responded.

"Why doesn't anyone ever take the offer of help", Romana grumbled under her breath. With a louder voice she addressed the giant snake directly, "That's not true Nagini", she began, "you are a sentient creature with your own wants and desires. The influence of Voldemort's soul fragment is suppressing those and replacing them with his own". She paused and allowed those words to sink in, "I implore you, take this offer because if you don't then I will have to remove the Horcrux from your body and that's something you will not survive".

Once again Romana wished she could pick up on the brain patterns of the snake to prepare herself for the next move. The answer came quicker than she was expecting though, _"You are right",_ Nagini began, _"I do have my own desires"_. Romana breathed a small sigh of relief, that didn't last long though, _"I desire to kill you for my Master"._

Romana watched in horror as the giant snake lunged for her, its fangs dripping with venom and her life, current life that was, flashed before her eyes. It wasn't a long flash, she didn't really get a lot of time to find out much about her current incarnation. She only hoped the next Romana wasn't stuck in the body of a teenager.

The pain from the snake fangs piercing her skin never came though. There was a loud swishing noise and the head of the giant snake came free from its body. Nagini let out a strangled cry as some wispy, black smoke floated into the TARDIS. Romana turned her head and spotted a stunned Neville with the Sword of Gryffindor in his trembling hands, "Looks like those lessons paid off Neville", she stated once she regained the power of speech.

The teen witches and wizards carefully approached the carcass of Voldemort's familiar, apart from Harry who looked very unsteady on his feet, "Mate you feeling alright?" Ron asked.

The answer came moments later as the dark haired wizard slumped forward, grasping his forehead with both hands. He let out a strangled cry of pain before collapsing to his knees, "He knows about the snake", Harry wheezed, "I don't think we need to worry about drawing him into the castle".

"He's coming here?" Neville squeaked, almost dropping the sword.

Harry nodded, "Looks like he's bringing his whole army too". He turned to Romana and asked, "Are you sure about this plan of yours".

Romana paused for a split second, she was more confident that she was a few minutes ago. With the snake down that just left the Horcrux inside Harry which could be dealt with another time, "Absolutely", she answered in most reassuring tone, "we need to evacuate the hall though, again". It seemed a little callous to evict the sickness, deceased and grieving from the Great Hall but it would be for their benefit in the long run, "Think you lot can help with that, I get the impress they didn't like me".

"We'll do what we can", Ron stated firmly, "so this is it then", he continued, "let's hope this works". For once Romana completely agreed with the red head, with all of Voldemort's army heading their way the consequences of failure was dire.

 _ **A/N2 –**_ _One more chapter of this part to go then we start moving away from The Deathly Hallows and into proper AU territory. Also means were getting closer to our favourite Time Lord..._


	20. The Dark Lord's Downfall

_Chapter 20 – The Dark Lord's Downfall_

Waiting, it was one thing that Romana had discovered about her current regeneration, she absolutely hated waiting. The irony wasn't lost on her, a four hundred year old Lady of Time who despised the slow passage of time. She leaned casually on the lectern at the far end of the Great Hall, staring intently at the entrance door. She recalled a few of Hermione's memories of the room, the first time she had seen the enchanted sky, her sorting ceremony and many more. Her human counterpart had been extremely happy here and hopefully after today, future generations of witches and wizards would feel the same sense of elation that once filled Hermione Granger.

Standing just to her left was Harry, the Time Lady didn't have to use her enhanced senses to pick up on the boy's nervousness. The other four core member's of Dumbledore's Army was extremely passive although there was a reason for that. She could've taken some of that passiveness right now from Harry, "Can you stop pacing", Romana snapped, "you're making me nervous".

"Forgive me for being a little apprehensive about having a face to face chat with my mortal enemy", Harry sniped back, "tends to make you a little nervous". Romana blinked a couple of times, recalling the brief exchanges she had with the Daleks during the War. Unfortunately she knew exactly how the young wizard felt.

Time continued to pass slowly until the distant thundering of footsteps began to get closer. Romana straightened herself up and Harry did exactly the same. She thrust her hands into her trouser pockets, the Time Lady wanted to look as casual as possible, "Show time", she whispered to herself.

A few seconds later the Dark Lord paced through the door, passing between the metal archway. Close behind him were the remains of his human followers, the Rani had done an impressive job of removing several key Death Eaters. Not that she would tell the renegade Time Lady that, if she ever caught up with her. "Harry Potter", Voldemort began smoothly, "and the Lady Romana, how nice of you to join us".

Romana forced back a smile, despite the calm exterior she could feel the nervousness from the Dark Lord. He knew he was vulnerable but his tight emotional control kept it well hidden, "Looks like you found us", Romana stated offhandedly, "any last words?"

There was a stunned silence from the room, even from Harry who was privy to Romana's plan, at the brazen attitude of the Time Lady. Soon Voldemort began to chuckle and that began to ripple around the Death Eaters. The Time Lady though stood impassive and waited for the moment to pass, "You seem confident", Voldemort replied coolly, "even the members of Dumbledore's so called Army".

Another snort of laughter from the Death Eaters but still no real movement from Romana, she continued to appraise the Dark Lord with a cool gaze. There was no doubting his intelligence and magical power, "You could've been so much more", she sighed loudly, "think of all the good you could've done but instead, you chose to destroy".

"You dare mock me", Voldemort roared angrily, "I am the greatest wizard of the last century".

"The greatest is debatable", Romana began, "but certainly amongst the top ten".

"Romana what are you doing?" Harry whispered, confused by the praise the Time Lady was lavishing on Voldemort.

"Just letting Tommy boy know his place in the world", Romana ignored the angry glare from Voldemort and jumped down from the elevated platform where the staff table stood and wondered towards the Death Eaters, "I'm going to tell you a story Tom, about someone of equal intelligence and brilliance". She slowly began to pace in front of the dark wizards, "His planet was dying and his people were suffering. He used his genius and scientific talents to come up with a solution to save his civilisation". She paused and stared directly at Voldemort, "That man's name was Davros".

Romana shuddered slightly at the mere mention of the creator of the Daleks but she had to prove a point, "In his unrelenting desire to see the Kaleds survive, he created the most dangerous creatures the universe has ever seen. The Daleks were unrelenting killing machines, a single Dalek could level a city in mere minutes".

"Sounds like my kind of creatures", Romana heard the male Carrow twin snigger with laughter.

The Time Lady suppressed her rage towards the ignorance of the man and calmly continued her lecture, "Problem with Davros was that he was too clever, not satisfied with dominion over a small quadrant of the galaxy he set his sights on reality itself". Romana's glare hardened, "He didn't live past the first day of the Time War yet not one of his Daleks mourned his loss". She paused, piercing Voldemort with a hardened stare, "Will anyone mourn you Tom?"

A quiet murmuring broke out in the room yet Voldemort remained largely impassive, "Fascinating story", he snorted, "are you trying to appeal to my humanity?"

"We both know that you tore your humanity apart Tom", Romana through a couple of items down at Voldemort's feet. They were the remains of his diary and Slytherin's locket, "Tore it into seven I believe".

The Dark Lord bristled angrily but he quickly regain his composure, "That no longer matters, I have you right where I want you". He slowly produced a familiar looking wand from his robes, "I am now the master of the Elder Wand, nothing shall stand in my way".

Romana gazed at the wand, in all the commotion of her rebirth she had completely forgotten about the Deathly Hallows. If the Dark Lord fully believed that he was the master of the wand then that means Severus Snape was dead. The Time Lady suspected there was more to the Potion Master than his irritable and sour exterior, however, she couldn't mourn his loss. He was nothing but a bitter bully towards his students and nothing would change her mind.

Allowing Voldemort a few more seconds to bask in his supposed victory, Romana continued to stare unimpressed at the wizard, "Finished?" she began, "you should know that Time Lords are hard to kill but feel free to have one free shot". She opened her arms and invited the shot, "This is your final chance to do some productive Tom, don't waste it".

A sneer crossed Voldemort's face and he raised his arm, _"Avada Kedavra",_ he roared, malice plastered all over his face.

A sense of anticipation flashed over the room, however, there was nothing. There was no flash of green light and Romana remained standing, "Performance issues?" she sniggered, "I hear that happens to every man at some point in their life".

"What magic is this?" Voldemort cried and attempted to cast the killing curse again.

"Not magic, science", Romana hopped back onto the platform next to Harry. She produced her sonic screwdriver, using it to seal the doors. At the same time Neville, Ginny, Luna and Ron disappeared, "Holographic projections, not really necessary but a nice touch I thought", she continued.

The Time Lady watched almost in amusement as the Death Eaters failed to cast any spells, "Fundamentally magic is the manipulation of energy, once you work out the frequency that energy oscillates on then it becomes a simple matter of creating a counter signal". Romana noticed the confused expressions on the group and realised she was talking to a group of Pureblood wizards, "I've blocked your magic", she added with a manic grin.

"Impossible", one of the Death Eaters cried, firmly in denial that he no longer had access to magic.

"Yet no one has cast a spell in the last minute", Romana replied. "I spent a long time thinking of a suitable punishment for you and your followers Tom", she continued, "then I remembered my pocket universe generator I created during my school days".

"You made a machine to create universes", Harry asked in disbelief.

Romana smiled, "Pocket universes, I was a youngster after all". She turned back to the gathered Death Eaters, "You wanted control over Hogwarts well now you have", she opened her arms wide, "this dimension contains an exact replica of the castle and its grounds". Her stare fell directly on Voldemort and she made sure he felt the full weight of her four hundred years, "The cost of this small victory is your magic", she added coldly.

The Time Lady pulled Harry away from the baying crowd, whilst they didn't have magic anymore that still didn't mean the Death Eaters were harmless. She didn't want to linger and taunt the volatile crowd for any longer than necessary, "You can't do this", an angry voice called out, "you have no authority over us".

"The time vortex itself gives me the authority", Romana roared, speaking as the President of Gallifrey, "very few will mourn your loss, let alone petition for clemency".

Stepping onto the staff table, Romana pointed her sonic device at the floor. She had built an exit door for her and Harry to leave into the dimension, "You haven't heard the last of Lord Voldemort", the Dark Lord roared. Romana opened her mouth to retort but quickly changed her mind. She had given the man and his followers plenty of chances to desist, they didn't deserve another moment of her time.

Activating her screwdriver, there was a flash of light as Romana and Harry were transported back into the actual Great Hall. In Romana's left hand was a metal sphere roughly the size of a cricket ball, "You're sure they can't escape from there?" Harry asked.

"The only exit door has to be operated by my sonic screwdriver", she wiggled the device in Harry's face, "and only my biometric print will open the outer defences so unless I drop the screwdriver into their dimension, Voldemort and the Death Eaters are stuck".

Harry nodded in confirmation and the Time Lady noticed his shoulders visibly relax, "What are you going to do with it now?" the teen wizard asked.

Romana hadn't really thought about that, she had been too concerned with getting the dimension gateway running that she never considered what to do now. There were many possibilities, lock the ball somewhere deep inside her TARDIS or perhaps cast it into a supernova. Instead she grabbed Harry's hand and placed it firmly into his grasp, "How about you decide?" she smiled, "he was your mortal enemy after all".

"Thanks", Harry grimaced, "leave the hard decisions up to me".

"Another thing I learned from the Doctor, don't stick around to clear up the mess", Romana sighed.

"You're not staying then?" Harry asked with a deflated tone.

The Time Lady had been thinking about this off and on for the last hour or so, "There's nothing really here for me Harry, other than you, Ron, Ginny, Luna and Neville", she began, "the Order made it perfectly clear they don't trust me".

"They'll come around", Harry pleaded with the brunette, "they just need time to accept that you're not Hermione".

"It's not as simple as that Harry", Romana responded, "maybe the Order will come around but what about the wizarding world?" She pointed at the ball in Harry's hand, "I created a different reality to imprison Voldemort. The common wizard won't have any idea what that means and you know how accepting they are of someone different".

Harry reluctantly conceded the point, "What if I wanted you to stay?"

Romana looked into Harry's piercing green eyes, feeling every ounce of sincerity behind his words. She could feel her resolve melting with every passing second, "I need to get away Harry, apart from my time as a human I've known nothing but war for heaven knows how long". The dark haired wizard nodded sadly, "But I suppose I could come back for a visit, just because you asked nicely". Moments later she found herself wrapped up in Harry's arms. Romana was initially surprised by the gesture but soon returned the hug, "Give me a couple of days and I'll be back", she whispered.

"I'll hold you to that", Harry mumbled in response, "what should I tell the others?"

"Exactly that", she responded and gently nudged Harry away, "I need a couple of days to recharge and I'll come back and visit". She paused as a silent thought passed between them, the Horcrux still needed to be removed. Some serious research would be needed to get that thing out of Harry's head.

The Time Lady released her grip on Harry and slowly walked out the Great Hall. With her conscious thoughts free of war for the first time in a long time, Romana wondered what to do next. Some time recharging would be good but she wondered if that would actually be possible. Her people, bar a few, were gone and now she had alienated herself from most of her human friends. She had lied to Harry, rest was probably the last thing on her mind right now. Still, getting away from the wizarding world for a period to allow herself to mourn for Gallifrey would do her good in the long run.

Maybe if she said it enough she would actually believe it.

 **END PART 1**

 _ **A/N –**_ _There we go, Voldemort's trapped in a pocket universe. Probably no way he can get out of there, surely._

 _I'm going to take a couple of weeks to work on other things then I'll be back with the next few chapters which will see the arrival of the Doctor. If you've liked this and want to check out some more of my DW related stuff, I've published a couple of crossover between DW and the BBC America/Netflix series Orphan Black. They're entitled "Echoes, Silence, Patience & Grace" and the newly published sequel "Cult of Personality". Give them a look if you're interested. _


	21. Part 2: Guilt

_Chapter 21_

 _Part 2 – Guilt  
_

A Type 80 TARDIS drifted through the Time Vortex, just like it had been for the last few weeks. The ships pilot was attempting to get some sleep, however, rest was providing extremely difficult. Romanadvoratrelundar tossed and turned fitfully, her eyelids twitching rapidly and her hands gripping the bed sheets tightly. Suddenly she woke with a start, a silent scream passing from her lips. It took the Time Lady several moments and a few deep, calming breathes to realise she was safely aboard her TARDIS. Wiping the sweat from her brow, Romana tossed the sheets to one side and gingerly got out of bed.

Romana had been going through the same cycle since she left Earth behind several ago, a little tinkering with her TARDIS, some light reading in the library before attempting to sleep. Every time she laid down though her dreams were filled with the sights, sounds and smells of war. Her vision swam with images of the deceased from Gallifrey and the children who would never get the chance to grow up. Interspersed with those memories were the victims of the Battle of Hogwarts, Remus Lupin, Lavender Brown, Colin Creevey and many others. The sight of a severely injured Fred Weasley was usually the trigger point to drag her from the dream, seeing his broken body whilst his family prayed for a miracle was the tipping point for her mental anguish.

The Time Lady stepped into the bathroom and splashed some cold water on her face. She stared hard at the reflection in the mirror with a mixture of anger and self loathing. Romana had promised Harry that she would return in a couple of days but had yet to follow through, "Coward", she hissed at her reflection and sharply turned away.

Wondering down the corridor back towards her room, Romana thought about why she hadn't returned to Earth. Perhaps she didn't want to see the damage left behind by the Death Eaters. Not necessary the physical damage but the emotional strain caused by war. The Time Lady had seen it too many times after inspecting the wreckage left behind by a Dalek raid. In the beginning she visited every site, wanting to use her influence as President to spur the population onwards.

As the war continued though Romana chose to remain safely inside the Citadel. The Doctor, or whatever he wanted to call himself at the time, always visited after every attack. After relaying every detail he would often criticise his old friend and President with just one word; Coward. He wasn't attacking her for not fighting on the front lines but for not visiting the families of the deceased and sheltering herself from the pain.

Romana opened the door to what she thought was her bedroom but instead found herself in the wardrobe, "Not this again", she grumbled out loud. Apparently her TARDIS was making it clear what she wanted Romana to do, "I keep telling you, I need to rest", she snapped and slammed the door shut. Walking further down the corridor she tried another door but again found herself in the wardrobe, "You're not going to let this go are you?" A firm mental nudge from the time ship gave Romana the answer, "Fine", she threw her arms into the air, "but I'm doing this under protest".

The brunette grabbed the first pair of grey trousers she found on the rack followed by a light blue blouse and a grey waistcoat to match the trousers. She spotted a dark blue military style coat that practically skimmed the floor which fitted her mood perfectly. Finally Romana located a pair of sturdy looking knee high boots which looked perfect for running if required.

Outfit complete Romana scraped her hair back into a loose ponytail and wandered towards the console room. The lights slowly came on as she stepped up to the console and Romana could feel the ship waking up after a long period idling. Hesitantly her fingers twitched above the control and her breathing became a little ragged, "You can do this", she reassured herself, "I am not a coward". Disengaging her brain for a moment she pulled down on the flight controls and the ship began to move, "Fifth of May 1998, Hogwarts", she read her destination out loud.

The rotor began to slow down, indicating their arrival at the programmed time and place. Romana quickly picked up her sonic screwdriver and placed it into her coat pocket. She then spotted the sonic blaster sitting on the console. Despite her promise, the Time Lady felt naked without the weapon somewhere near her person. Grabbing the holster she quickly belted it around her waist before she could change her mind.

The first step was always going to be the hardest and that's what Romana found as she was about to open the door. Summoning all of her courage she quickly pulled the handle and jumped outside. Her TARDIS had once again assumed the shape of a red telephone box causing Romana to roll her eyes. The ship had landed somewhere near Hagrid hut, or the remains of where it had once stood. All that remained was a pile of burned wood, probably after an overzealous Death Eater had set the place on fire.

Romana briefly feared for the half giant, however, those were quickly dismissed when she spotted his friendly face poking over the top of the wreckage, "Ello there Hermione", he greeted, "sorry Romana, it'll take me some time to get used to that", he added with a smile.

"It's fine Hagrid", she replied, relieved that the bearded giant wanted to remain on friendly terms, "I'm sorry for what happened to your house".

"Thank you", Hagrid began, "it's just a load o' wood and straw, I can easily rebuild". Romana offered a small smile at the optimism of the man, "Fang got out alright and I've still got my health so can't complain really". His face darkened slightly, "Could've been much worse".

"Indeed", Romana replied solemnly, "are Harry and Ron around?" she quickly changed the subject.

Hagrid nodded, "Last I saw them they were near the main entrance. Heard them talkin' bout you jus' this morning, reckon they miss having you around". Romana smiled but inside she felt incredibly guilty for leaving Harry and Ron behind. She said a quick farewell to Harry but that was it, she didn't stop to think about Ron or the others.

Leaving Hagrid behind she meandered through the grounds and had to marvel at the clean up job that had already taken place. There were a few scorch marks and some larger pieces of debris but on the whole, the castle grounds weren't looking too bad. If she didn't know there had been a major battle here a few days ago then Romana would never had guessed. It wasn't just the physical signs either, the whole atmosphere felt lighter. There was still the lingering sensation of death but the crushing nature of a fixed point in time had lifted. The impending sense of destruction had been replaced by hope and optimism.

Romana joined the main stone path and it didn't take her long to spot the familiar red hair of Ron Weasley. Not too far away was the equally familiar figure of Harry Potter. The two best friends were sharing a joke whilst levitating some fallen masonry away from the door. Romana hesitated slightly, remembering her human counterpart who probably would've been standing with them if she hadn't opened the watch. Not for the first time Romana wondered if she had done the right thing by unlocking the Chameleon Arch. Harry and Ron would still have their best friend and thinking selfishly, Romana wouldn't be burdened with survivors guilt.

The Time Lady wanted to turn around and run away but unfortunately for her, Harry and Ron spotted her standing on the path. She remained rooted to the spot as the two teen wizards dropped what they were doing and jogged in her direction. As they approached she could spot the hesitancy in their eyes. If she had still been Hermione they would've thrown their arms around her but they stopped just short and stood awkwardly instead, "Hey", Harry greeted, "how's things?"

There were many answers that Romana wanted to give and they bounced on the tip of her tongue. She wanted to tell them about her terrible nightmares and the crushing weight of her guilt. Instead she replied, "Not bad, sorry I'm later than planned I slept a little longer than anticipated".

The brunette watched them carefully, she suspected that neither of them truly brought her generic response but they chose not to push her further, "Fancy a walk?" Ron asked. Romana nodded and the trio moved away from the entrance courtyard and into the grounds, "You've missed most of the clear up", the red head continued, "although it hasn't taken as long as we thought".

"That's good", Romana mumbled in reply. Another question hovered on the tip of her tongue and she hesitated for moment before asking, "How's Fred doing?"

She felt the nervousness from the wizards and Romana feared the worst, "Still hanging on", Ron sighed, "Pomfrey couldn't do much for him so he's been transferred to St Mungo's". A tense silence fell over the group before the youngest Weasley son continued, "The Healers have done every test they can think of but he hasn't responded to any of them".

"Ron I'm so sorry", Romana replied, "if you want another opinion I know the best hospital in the Universe, I'll happily take him for some further tests".

"I would like that", Ron began but Romana could sense his hesitancy, "Mum might not like it though". The Time Lady nodded muted and in resignation, "You know her she doesn't respond well to change".

"I get it Ron, you don't have to sugar coat it for me", Romana snapped bitterly. Instantly she regretted her tone, "I'm sorry that came out wrong", she added.

"No it didn't", Harry interjected himself, "I've been working on the Order and most have come around to you but there are still a few stubborn people". Romana was buoyed slightly by Harry's efforts, she hadn't asked him to act as her personal cheerleader but she appreciated it none the less. "Bill was a bit of a struggle but Ginny wore him down-"

"Hexed him into submission more like", Ron snorted, bring a smile to Romana's face and the image of Bill Weasley getting chased around the school by some bat bogey's.

Harry let out a small laugh, "Oh yeah forgot about that", he sniggered, "Percy's came around surprisingly easily. It's hard to tell what George is thinking", he let out a small sigh, "he's been rather quiet for the last few days".

"Dad's trying to act as peace keeper between Ginny and Mum", Ron picked up the story, "they've been at loggerheads over you".

"I don't want to cause friction between your family", Romana stated with a panicked tone, "if it makes things easier I'll just go-"

"No you don't", Ron grabbed hold of her arm, "please don't go anywhere", he pleaded. Romana's position softened as she saw the desperate look in his eyes, "It's nothing personal, Mum just had this vision of Hermione and I as part of this big happy Weasley family. It's going to take her some time to adjust to the idea that it's never going to happen now".

Romana nodded slowly in understanding, Mrs Weasley could be stubborn but she usually had the best interests of her family at heart. "Do you really know someone who could help Fred?" Harry asked.

"Depends on the damage", Romana replied, "he would have to be seen sooner rather than later. I'm not an expert on human biology but the longer something like a brain injury is left untreated it lowers the chance of recovery".

As the wizards absorbed that information, Romana felt her time senses prickling. A tingling like this only usually happened when a time capsule was about to materialise. Since there were only a few left in existence it limited the choices of who it could be, "Are you alright Romana?" Ron asked. The Time Lady didn't respond, instead she focused on that feeling. It could be the Rani returning, she had run off with her collection of 'experiments' some time before the end of the battle. Something told her it wasn't the renegade Time Lady though, she was probably having too much fun doing things that Romana dared not think about.

Suddenly there was a loud groaning noise that sounded like a metal chain getting dragged repeatedly over some mechanical machinery. That noise could only mean the arrival of one Time Lord, the only one stupid enough to run a TARDIS with the breaks on, "He really does pick his moments". Across the grass Romana could see a blue box in the shape of a 1960's Police Box materialising into view, announcing that the Doctor was here.


	22. The Slap Felt Across The Universe

_Chapter 22 – The Slap Felt Across The Galaxy_

Slamming the door of his TARDIS shut, the Time Lord known as the Doctor listened intently as a few stray arrows from Queen Elizabeth's guards thudded into his time ship. He couldn't understand what caused the great English Queen to be so violently against him. After making an enemy of Queen Victoria a couple of years ago, the Doctor resolved to stay away from any Queen of English. Which was a shame, he was due to play a croquet match against the Duke of Edinburgh in a few days.

Elizabeth's army was closing in and whilst there was no danger of them breaching his defences, it was probably a good idea to run away and quickly. Dashing to the console he pulled the switch and the ancient time ship groaned into life, "That was a close one", he mumbled, "not sure what I've done to upset Good Queen Bess but I bet it'll be fun finding out", he added with a grin.

"Is every trip like this", his companion, medical student Martha Jones, wheezed in response, "meeting Shakespeare, saving the world from witches and running away from Queens?"

"Pretty much", the Time Lord shrugged, "well, apart from meeting Shakespeare. Get a bit boring if I met him everyday". His gaze settled on the young student, truthfully when he offered her one trip that's exactly what he meant. The pain of losing Rose was still fresh in his memory and he wasn't willing to open himself up to the potential heart ache if he lost another companion. There was something to his Martha Jones though, clearly she was a bright and intelligent young woman. After all, not everyone could say that Shakespeare had written a sonnet about them.

He hovered around the console, his fingers debating whether to plug in the co-ordinates for twenty first century London. As he did so his mind drifted back to Donna Noble, the gobby bride to be he encountered a few weeks ago. He didn't want to admit it until now but she had been right, he did need someone alongside him. Sometimes he just didn't know when to stop.

Thinking back to his last adventure, a small grin crossed the Time Lord's face, all the talk of witches gave him an idea. It had been a long time since he dropped in on Britain's wizarding community, not since his seventh incarnation if he recalled correctly. Plus it would give him a good opportunity to show off in front of his new, potential companion, "So you're a Harry Potter fan?" he asked Martha casually.

"Not a super fan, I'm not planning on queuing up when book seven comes out", she replied, "but they're good to read when I'm on call during a night shift". She paused, catching the mischievous look in the Doctor's eyes, "You've read the final book?" he nodded, "could you tell me what happens? I can lord it over my sister Tish, she's a massive fan".

"I can do one better than that Miss Jones", he grinned, "fancy a bonus trip?" The trainee doctor nodded and the Time Lord pulled down on the flight controls again. He gripped tightly on to the console as the ship crashed through the time vortex on the way to their destination. He couldn't wait to see the look on Martha's face when they arrived and she opened the door.

The ship began to groan as it materialised at his chosen destination, landing with a firm bump, "Why don't you go first?" he said to his companion.

He watched as Martha stepped outside the door, deliberately hanging back for a few seconds. He placed his hands in his pockets and strolled outside, carefully closing the door behind him, "It's magnificent", Martha gasped, "it looks just like Hogwarts".

"That's because it is Hogwarts", the Doctor grinned, "Martha Jones, welcome to Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry".

There was a brief pause as Martha scanned him for any sign of deceit. When she couldn't find any, her jaw nearly hit the ground, "You're not joking?" the Doctor shook his head, "this is really Hogwarts?"

"Absolutely", the Time Lord began, "the best stories are the ones with a small grain of truth behind them. Old JK's books just so happened to have a more than a small grain of truth, more like an entire sack full of truth", he jabbered on.

"Slow down, I'm still processing the fact I'm standing in the shadow of Hogwarts", Martha gushed, "can you explain the whole thing, from the very beginning".

The Doctor nodded slowly, this was always his favourite part about taking a companion to a new location. "Little known fact about JK Rowling is that she's a Squib, or a non magical person born into a magical family". The pair began to slowly and leisurely stroll across the grass, "See Joanne was born into an old pureblood family, when they discovered she couldn't use magic she was put up for adoption".

"That's terrible", Martha gasped, "so all that stuff in the books about pureblood bigotry is true?"

The Time Lord sighed before answering, there had always been tension been the older families and the new bloods, as they were called in the nineteenth century. The blood wars of Grindlewald had sown hatred across magical Britain and from that mess rose the Dark Lord Voldemort. It pained the Doctor that hadn't arrived to assist against this Dark Lord but every time he tried to materialise during the 1970's or 1980's, the TARDIS rebuffed his attempts. After a while he stopped, if the old girl was so against arriving during that time period then it must be for a good reason.

Turning his attention back to his companion, he replied, "Unfortunately yes, just like in the muggle world there are those who discriminate simply because they believe someone is inferior".

"Know what that feels like", Martha mumbled, "so getting back to JK", she quickly changed the subject".

"Indeed", the Doctor grinned, more than happy to move onto a happy topic, "during the early 90's JK Rowling decided to track down her real family. Along the way he learned about Harry Potter, the famous Boy-Who-Lived. Deciding that it would make a good story, she did as much research as she could which eventually led to the famous series we know and love".

"So all of it really happened?" Martha asked, almost giddy with excitement.

"Well can't say for definite", the Doctor replied, "some of it must've been exaggerated for artistic licence I'm sure". Another grin flashed across his face, "Tell you what, since we're here let's find out".

The time travellers strode across the grassy field that surrounded the ancient castle and as they did, the Doctor had a good look at his surroundings. There were obvious signs of a recent battle which would make sense. If his TARDIS had dropped him in the correct location, this should be a couple of days after the Battle of Hogwarts. He could still feel the oppressive sensation of death in the air along with the energy residue belonging to thousands of magical curses. There was something else in the air, something he wasn't expecting, "Temporal energy", he mumbled.

"Did you say something Doctor?" Martha asked.

Still distracted, the Time Lord quickly dismissed her concerns, "Oh nothing", he began, "just talking out loud, don't mind me". He quickly focused on the energy again, allowing the sensation to wash over his body. It was strange, it felt very similar to the signature from a TARDIS. That was impossible though, his was the only TARDIS left in existence. He quickly decided that the magical energy must be magnifying the feeling of his TARDIS, that was the only logical explanation.

The Time Lord could see the entrance to the school getting closer and briefly wondered if the portrait of his old friend Albus would still remember him. He was jogged from his thoughts by Martha tugging firmly on his hand, "Oh my God Doctor, look who it is", she pointed at three figures in slowly walking in their direction. "I'd bet you anything that's Harry, Ron and Hermione".

"Most likely", the Doctor replied, "look a little different than I pictured them". That wasn't true, the dark haired teen and the red head looked exactly how the Time Lord imagined Harry Potter and Ron Weasley. The curiosity was the brunette, the face said Hermione Granger but the straightened brown hair and military jacket suggested otherwise. There was something else about the girl that felt familiar but he couldn't quite place it.

Taking a couple of paces ahead of Martha, the Doctor reached into his pocket for his psychic paper, "Hello there I'm the Doctor from the Ministry", he flashed the paper in their direction, "this is my assistant Martha Jones. Don't mind us we're just checking up on the repairs, we'll be out your way before you know it".

The Doctor watched as the two boys inspected the psychic paper closely. The girl though hung back, her eyes never once leaving the Doctor. It was a little disconcerting if he was honest, "Hey Harry, apparently this guy's from the Ministry", Ron stated.

A smug feeling of victory flowed through the Doctor, however, that was quickly extinguished, "Funny, that bit of paper looks blank to me", Harry added. The Time Lord quickly looked at the psychic paper, that was twice now in quick succession that it had let him down. He quickly began to think of an escape plan, there was no telling what a group of post war survivors would do to a potential threat. To his surprise though, Harry looked over to the girl, "You sure this is him?"

"Positive", she replied, "no one else I know would team a suit with a pair of sandshoes".

Martha sniggered behind him, much to the Time Lord's annoyance, "They're not sandshoes", he mumbled in response. "I'm sorry do we know each other?" he added, "you might've met me but I may not have met you yet".

"Doctor I can't believe you don't recognise me", the girl replied, visibly deflated, "I know you're much older than when we last met but I don't think you've gone completely senile". The Time Lord frowned, there was a sense of familiarity in her voice, "You've regenerated since the last time too", she added, "I like it, definitely an improvement on that cranky old warrior".

Now the Doctor was truly stunned, not only did this woman know about regeneration but she had met his Time War incarnation. He desperately racked his brain, he didn't interact much with Earth during that time so surely he would remember. Suddenly something came back to him but it wasn't from his warrior regeneration, "I remember", he began, "New York around seventy years ago. I left you on the pier side and yet here you are, not looking any older".

A deep frown crossed the brunettes face, "Doctor we've never been to New York together". She closed the gap but the Doctor remained cautious, "Now Paris I remember, the Eiffel Tower, the seven Mona Lisa's, not to mention Count Scarlioni the Jagaroth". Frozen to the spot he watched as the familiar stranger snorted with laughter, "I wonder what Duggan's up to now, probably in prison or hospital I-".

"Who are you?" the Doctor asked dangerously, this woman knew too much about his past to be a mere acquaintance, "I want to know exactly who you are".

To his surprise the woman didn't flinch at his harsh tone, in fact she almost looked annoyed, "You senile old man it's me, Romana", she snapped back, "have you been dropped on your head recently?"

The Time Lord's hearts nearly stopped at the mention of Romana's name. How dare this imposter use the name of his former companion against him. Feeling the anger of the Oncoming Storm brewing in his vains, he stared harshly at the brunette, "Big mistake, stealing Romana's identity". The woman gaped for a moment before frowning, "Whatever your plan is you can forget it because I'm the Doctor, I'm nine hundred and three years old. I'm a Time Lord from the planet Galli-".

Suddenly he felt a sharp flash of pain and he instantly recoiled from the stinging blow to his face. As he was rubbing his cheek the Doctor could see a look of alarm from Martha, however, the two teenage boys were laughing at his expense, "That's going to leave a mark", Harry snorted with laughter.

"You arrogant, pompous, stupid, self centred moron", the woman suddenly turned on him, "save your little speech for someone else Doctor". She groaned in annoyance loudly, "If you still had that stupid scarf of yours I would be bloody strangling you with it right now". The painful slapped had shaken some of the Doctor's memories and right now, he was getting a flash back to the last few weeks of the Time War, "Remembering now are we?" she continued with biting sarcasm, "last time we met I slapped you as well".

It felt like a cloud had been lifted from the Doctor's vision. He could see the tired and battle weary eyes that belonged to someone much older than the woman in front of him. The glare he was receiving from exactly the same as his former companion and President used to give him all the time. That confirmed it, this woman had to be Romanadvoratrelundar. He had often dreamed to meeting another Time Lord after all this time, going as far to prepare an eloquent speech. Unfortunately under the angry glare of Romana, all that went out the window, "What?" he muttered.

 _ **A/N –**_ _Yeah, probably not the reunion everyone had in mind. I debated which Doctor to bring in, settling on Ten for two reasons. Firstly the references to JK Rowling in "The Shakespeare Code" gave a perfect way for him to casually drop in. Also I love Ten, he's my favourite._

 _The "JK Rowling is a Squib" idea probably isn't uniquely mine. It's been thrown around in various different places over the years. Also hinted at a future adventure of this Romana and the Doctor cause I'm a tease. Bonus points if you know what classic DW serial Romana reference as well._

 _Next time we'll see that scene from Romana's perspective (which will fill in the majority of blanks you might have) along with some Time Lord bonding._


	23. The Calm After The Storm

_Chapter 23 – The Calm After The Storm_

Romana was a mixture of emotions from the moment the Doctor's TARDIS landed on at Hogwarts. She would be glad to have a friendlier Time Lord around for company, dealing with the Rani was really testing her patience. Then again the last time she had seen the Doctor they hadn't parted on the best of terms. There was also no telling how far removed from the Time War he was. The battles were still fresh in her memory, would he really was an emotional wreck of a Time Lady with a severe case of PTSD hanging around?

Immediately Romana spotted a dark skinned young woman in a red leather jacket exiting the TARDIS. Even at this distance the Time Lady knew she was human, probably his latest companion. She was quickly followed by a tall, skinny man dressed in a brown suit and long, tan coloured coat. Immediately her mind was filled with the sensation of another Time Lord. That was the sole good reason for having the Rani around, it made her mind feel less empty. She reached out to the Doctor but his mental presence seemed strangely closed off. Frowning slightly she slowly crossed the grass to meet the Time Lord.

The initial conversation didn't go to plan, mainly because the Doctor didn't seem to recognise her. Understandable, she had regenerated but surely he could pick up on her mental presence? Just when she thought the penny finally dropped for the Time Lord, he began spouting nonsense about meeting her in New York. Maybe using The Moment had affected his memory slightly, that was the only logical explanation Romana could come up with. Deciding to try and jog his memory Romana closed the gap, bringing up their shared adventure in Paris several centuries ago. That was one of Romana's most treasured memories, if that didn't work then nothing would.

When that didn't work she reached out both mentally and verbally. Still the Doctor refused to connect with her, instead he was angered by her presence. He began spouting off some self righteous speech about being a Time Lord, like he was more important than anyone else in the universe. The Doctor always had an arrogant streak, more prominent in some regenerations than others, like his Sixth for example. This was something else though, it was like the Doctor actually believed he was better than everyone else.

Her anger and frustration finally bubbled over and she pulled her arm back before slapping him across the face. The blow was harder than even Romana anticipated, forcing her to shake her hand to allow the pain to subside. She coldly reminded him of their last encounter inside the Presidential office, that time she had slapped him too but for much different reasons. The realisation of her identity was slowly dawning on the Doctor but even then all he could say was a small, faint, "What?"

"Really, that's all you have to say after all this time", Romana blew some air out of her cheeks, "and why can't I reach you mentally? Surely you're not closing yourself off to me Doctor".

The Time Lord though still look at her gormlessly, "But, what?" he stammered out.

"Doctor I know you scraped a pass at school but you're more intelligent than this", Romana rolled her eyes, "try and form a cohesive sentence".

She watched on as the Doctor stopped rubbing his cheek for a moment and visibly regained his composure, "Romana how can you be here?" he asked, "you should be dead".

"Charming as always Doctor", Romana snorted, "perhaps this is a conversation we can take somewhere more private". She glanced back to the teens, "Can you escort Miss Jones around the castle", the Time Lady briefly caught Martha's eyes, "that is your real name, correct?"

"Erm yeah", a flabbergasted Martha responded, "Doctor who is this? I don't think she's Hermione Granger".

"No she isn't", the Doctor replied which drew a snort of laughter from Romana. The woman wasn't completely incorrect in her assumption, "Romana's a friend, she's one of my people".

Romana could see another question on Martha's lips but she quickly stopped her, "Harry and Ron can fill you in on some of the basics", she stated. The Time Lady turned to the wizards and added, "Try and remember that you might be from different time periods". A knowing look passed across her face, "Bad things happen to wizards who mess with time".

With the wizards escorting Martha around the ground of the castle, Romana beckoned the Doctor to follow her. They began walking towards the Black Lake as an awkward silence hung in the air. Romana decided that she would have to be the one to break the ice, "I'm sorry for slapping you Doctor", she apologies, "I let my temper get the best of me". The Time Lady sighed heavily, "Been happening a lot lately if I'm honest".

"Must be pretty recent for you", the Doctor stated mutely, "the end of the War". Romana nodded numbly and a look of understanding across the Time Lord's face, "I was angry too in my first few years afterwards. Then again I did think I was all alone", he added with a heavy sigh, "how did you escape Romana?"

"I had help", Romana replied. Something was warning her not to tell the Doctor the full story. Some part of her escape must've been in his future. Near the edge of the black lake she sat down on a large stone and beckoned the Time Lord to do the same, "I can't tell you the whole story because it forms part of your personal future". The Doctor shifted uncomfortably but nodded in acceptance, "The Rani bundled me off the planet, moments before", she couldn't even say 'before Gallifrey burned', settling for , "well you know".

"The Rani?" the Doctor hissed, "she's out there too?" Romana nodded, feeling the simmering anger of the Time Lord, "where?"

"I don't know", Romana shrugged, "she was here not too long ago but she disappeared". She didn't dare tell the Doctor about the Rani's collection of dark wizards she acquired during the battle. Knowing the Doctor like she did, he would probably make it his personal mission to track her down, "I think she's even further along in her timeline than you", she continued, "maybe several centuries".

Romana knew about the rivalry between the Doctor and the Rani. Despite that the pair had still fought together during the Time War, sometimes standing shoulder to shoulder with each other, "How did she seem?" the Doctor asked.

"Strangely muted", Romana began, "like she wanted to be left alone", she added pointedly. The silence continued as they watched the Giant Squid splash around in the water, "When did things become so strained between us Doctor?" Romana asked when she could bare the silence no longer, "we used to be the best of friends". The Time Lord continued to stare blankly across the lake, "Are you angry with me?"

"Course not", the Doctor snorted, "I'm still in shock that you're here. I spent years believing I was the last Time Lord alive, now I discover a couple more survived". The realisation of that fact suddenly slammed into Romana like a ton of bricks. No wonder the Doctor felt so closed off, he wasn't expecting to encounter another Time Lord. As a result his ability to sense each other must've become muted. She watched curiously as he closed his eyes before feeling a familiar presence inside her mind, "I've almost forgotten what it's like, the sensation of another Time Lord inside my head".

Tentatively Romana reached out and grasped his hand. She had only been alone for a few days, the Doctor must've believed himself to be alone for a few years if not decades. To lighten the mood Romana decided to tease her friend, "You said you were nine hundred years old", she began, "when we first met you were seven hundred and sixty one and I know for a fact that more time has passed than that". She watched the Time Lord squirm uncomfortably, "Lying about your age again Doctor?" she teased.

"Yeah well", he began awkwardly, "if you could knock a couple of centuries off, wouldn't you?" Romana sighed at the vanity of the man, "You know as well as I do that the Time War warped the time vortex, we lost and gained so many years that it's hard to truly tell how old I am now". The Time Lady had to agree with that statement, the War made it hard to keep track of events. Some inexperienced Time Lords went mad trying to keep track of a linear time line. "So Hogwarts", she recognised the Doctor's poor attempt to change the subject, "how did you end up here?"

"Not through choice", she reached into her pocket and fished out the old pocket watch which used to house her identity, "recognise one of these".

The Doctor took the object and inspected it closely, "This is a Chameleon Arch", he declared, "never seen one until now. I just thought they were a myth, something teachers used as a threat", he cleared his throat and added in a pompous voice, "if you don't study hard we will drop you on an undeveloped planet with no memory of your own existence".

Romana laughed softly, "I can assure you Doctor that no teacher did that under my Presidency", she carefully took the watch back, "but the Chameleon Arch is real. The Rani used it to turn me human, well a human witch to be precise".

"Why would she do that?" the Doctor frowned.

"No idea", Romana shrugged, "cruel joke probably, I was forced to live as a human child for eighteen years. Eighteen years spent as Hermione Granger to be exact".

The Doctor's eyes widened, "No way", he beamed, "she was always my favourite character in the books". Romana frowned in confusion at the statement, leading the Doctor to explain about the book series that would be published over the course of the next decade. She wondered how the wizarding world would react if they knew their saviour's story was available to buy in the muggle world, "So you helped in the Battle of Hogwarts then?"

"Helped is maybe an exaggeration", Romana snorted, "I tried to stop the bloodshed but I couldn't seal Voldemort away in time".

"Sealed away?" the Doctor asked, "JK's books didn't explain that bit. Then again she also didn't say that Harry Potter's best friend was an alien". Romana smiled, she couldn't imagine anyone being crazy enough to write a story like that, "Could you show me?" he continued, "how you trapped Voldemort away?"

Romana nodded slowly, sharing memories telepathically was easier with another Time Lord. She closed her eyes and allowed her thoughts to flow towards the Doctor. She recalled everything she could, from setting up the gateway through the numerous deaths and all the way to the final sealing. She chose to exclude anything involving the Rani, she really wanted to avoid having a shouting match with the Doctor about the renegade Time Lady. It was slightly cowardly but that would be an awkward conversation for another time.

Once the memory share had finished, she allowed herself to relax, "Little different than the books", the Doctor shrugged, "but I think you did the best you could". Romana went to protest but the Time Lord stopped her, "Romana people were always going to die during this battle", he paused as a look of sad resignation passed over his face, "that's something I've had to accept over the centuries. Doesn't mean I like it but sometimes that's the way it's got to be".

The Doctor was right, Romana didn't like it and if she had her way then no one would have to suffer again. The experience of the last few minutes had been extremely draining, the lack of good quality sleep didn't help either. She didn't have the strength to argue with the Doctor about philosophy, for now she was just happy to be in his presence.

The Time Lords sat quietly by the lake for several more minutes, only much more peacefully than earlier. Romana was feeling much more relaxed than she had been for a long time, probably since the Time War had begun. Unfortunately the Doctor ruined the moment, "So what are you going to do now?"

That was a question she feared, what to do next? She didn't belong in the magical world, that had been made very clear during the battle. There was no home to return to, other than her TARDIS. Truthfully all she wanted to do was sleep for as long as possible, "I don't know", she partially lied.

There was a tense moment before the Doctor stated, "You could come with me, it'll be just like old times".

Romana tensed slightly, as much as she wanted to be in the Doctor's company the last thing she wanted right now was gallivanting around the universe. She didn't want to hurt his feelings though, "Can I think about that Doctor?" He shifted uncomfortably but nodded in agreement all the same, "We could just enjoy this moment", she added.

"I think that would be perfect", the Doctor smiled and gently placed his arm around her shoulder. Romana snuggled into his chest, although he wasn't as comfortable as previous regenerations owing to his skinniness. For this moment though she was willing to accept a mild amount of discomfort if it meant having a feeling of peace and calm.

 _ **A/N –**_ _So with the Doctor aware of two surviving Time Lords, the Whoniverse is now going to be AU. More than likely Romana won't be joining the Doctor as a full time companion, just going to throw that out there right now. She will have her own 'Doctor' style adventures and as well as dropping in on the Time Lord's adventures...although she might not meet him in chronological order._

 _Thank you to everyone who's reviewed the last few chapters. I have noted down any suggestions for future ideas, however, I'm pretty set for the next 20-30 chapters so nothing will be acted upon for the foreseeable future._


	24. Ghosts Of Future Past

_Chapter 24 – Ghosts of Future Past_

Romana wasn't sure how long she stayed by the lake with the Doctor, it could've been minutes of possibly hours. Despite their different philosophical opinions during the War, the Time Lord would always be her best friend. At some point they had been more than friends, especially during her second life. Maybe they would be again in future but not right now. Romana wasn't in the right place mentally to think about romance and neither was the Doctor. The mental exchanges revealed the depth of the Time Lord's feelings for a human, Rose Tyler. She had been trapped in a parallel universe, forever separating the pair. It was especially tragic, if the High Council of Gallifrey still existed they could open a window into the other universe.

The Time Lord began to shift against Romana's embrace signally that it was probably time to move, "I should go find Martha", the Doctor began, "before she gets too comfortable in the castle".

Offering his hand to Romana, which she gratefully accepted, the pair began to slowly meander towards the castle. They passed another large pile of rubble on the way, one that hadn't been cleared away after the battle, "How did the books end?" Romana asked, "was everyone happy in the end?"

"Course they were", the Doctor replied breezily, "it would be a pretty bad story if there wasn't a happy ending".

"That wasn't quite the question I was asking Doctor and you know it", the Time Lady stated snippily.

The Time Lord sighed loudly before responding, "Does it matter Romana, there's a lot of truth in the books but they were just a work of fiction". Romana knew this but was she was clinging onto the notion that there was more fact than fiction in the series. She had to desperately know if she had made a difference, "People on both sides died Romana let's just leave it at that". The Time Lady snorted, distinctly unhappy with that response. Surely the Doctor knew that she would just find her own copy and read for herself. Being obstructive wasn't really solving anything.

Knowing the Doctor was a stubborn individual, Romana chose not to press the argument further. The last thing she wanted to do is annoy the only Time Lord left who she would class as friendly. As the walk towards the castle continued, it was the Doctor who offered a small nugget of information, "One thing I will say is that in the books all the Horcruxes were destroyed".

"I know what you're going to say Doctor", Romana sighed, "and it's something I'm working on". She shook her head before added, "I couldn't risk anything happening to Harry, I don't know what I would've done if he had died".

Romana slowed her pace her head bowed at which point she was hit with an overwhelming emotion from the Doctor, empathy, "Oh Romana I know exactly how you feel", the older Time Lord practically whispered. "Want a small piece of advice", the Time Lady nodded vigorously, "don't isolate yourself, you need people around you even if it's to call you an idiot".

Romana snorted with laughter, "Sound advice which probably means you didn't come up with it". The Doctor looked guilty and scratched his head nervously, "Who gave you that advice Doctor?" she asked.

"You did", the Time Lord smirked.

"Really?" Romana's memory wasn't perfect but she couldn't recall having that conversation with the Doctor.

"Maybe it's a conversation you haven't experienced yet", he added cryptically, "oh now this is more like the Hogwarts I remember", he quickly changed the subject as they entered the courtyard. Romana wanted to direct the conversation back but something told her the subject was closed, "I helped Godric and Rowena put that turret in place", the Time Lord continued, "Just before the White Guardian put us together".

The Time Lady watched the misty eyed Doctor's get lost in his memories, "The good old days", she recalled, "when our only job was to put together a mystical and powerful artefact to prevent the universe from plunging into chaos".

"Sounds like an average Saturday to me", the Doctor smiled. He pointed up at Ravenclaw Tower, "Rowena fancied me you know, she cornered me at the top of that tower".

"As modest as ever Doctor", Romana nudged him in the arm, "there was something likeable about that man, even if he wasn't much of a looker", she added with a cheeky smile.

"Oi", the Doctor cried, "didn't stop you if I recall correctly", Romana blushed furiously, turning her gaze away from the Time Lord, "if we're going to start that game, how about those ridiculous dresses your first used to wear".

"Ridiculous", Romana huffed, "you wouldn't know style if it slapped you around the face Doctor".

The Time Lord snorted, "Wearing heels to visit a boggy marshland, not very bright for someone with a triple first from the Academy".

Romana was lost for words for a moment, she had to admit the Doctor was right. Trying to traverse Boscombe Moor in heels probably wasn't her best idea, not that she wanted to admit that to him though, "Yes well", she huffed, "need I remind you about your decorative vegetable phase".

"That served a purpose-"

"Or that ghastly outfit your sixth wore", she sniffed, "tell me, how many clowns did you have to strip in order to construct that monstrosity".

"Clowns?" the Doctor cried in a surprisingly good impersonation of his sixth incarnation, "well what about your third? Wearing heavy boots, dark eyeliner, berets and trench coats together like an emo Barbie doll".

The Time Lady was about to retort but she found herself lost for words, "I have no idea what that means", she stated in confusion. The two children of Gallifrey looked at each other for a moment before the Doctor burst out laughing. Romana couldn't contain herself and she too began to laugh, "Look at us, bickering like children about our fashion choices".

"Ridiculous isn't it", the Time Lord replied and Romana had absolutely no argument to that. As the laughter continued, Romana realised that she hadn't smiled this much in a long time. It was amazing that something so mundane had brought such joy to her hearts, "Keep hold of that feeling", the Doctor interrupted her thoughts, "keep hold of the little things in life, trust me they will keep you going".

Romana smiled gratefully at the Doctor's advice as a mischievous smile flashed across her face, "You weren't all bad Doctor, number five had a certain boyish charm about him". Unknowingly she began to close the gap between them, "And eight certainly was the romantic, several times over", she added with a saucy grin.

"Yes him and your second really meshed together well", he added before realising how awkward that sounded. Romana watched the discomfort on his face and laughed, "This one isn't so bad either", he added with a small smile.

"Please Doctor I look like a child", Romana sighed, drawing a small laugh from the Time Lord, "alright maybe not a child but it'll be hard to get respect from anyone looking like a teenager".

"I dunno, you earned my respect earlier", the Doctor inched closer himself, "that fiery speech, that passion, definitely something attractive about that".

Romana became aware of how close they now were, close enough for her to reach out and touch his spiky hair, "I like your hair", she stated.

"Doesn't make you sound shallow at all", the Doctor teased.

The Time Lady cursed herself as she looked into the Doctor's dark eyes. They were sad eyes but there was something else there, a small spark of hope whenever he looked in Romana's direction. Old memories and feelings stirred, however, they were quickly shut down by a loud cough, "Are we interrupting something?" Ron asked.

The Time Lords jumped apart in embarrassment to see Harry, Ron and Martha staring at them. Romana wasn't sure but she thought she could see a hint of jealousy behind the human woman's eyes, "How long have you been standing there?" Romana asked, straightening out her coat.

"Long enough to see you flirting with each other", Harry replied with more than a hint of mirth.

"Harry we're centuries old members of the most advanced species in the known universe", Romana huffed, "we are above such frivolities as flirting".

"You were totally flirting", Ron sniffed with a slightly bitter tone, "could we have a word?"

"Absolutely", the Doctor couldn't move quickly enough, "need to have a word with old Dumbles anyway, is the Headmaster's office still in the same place?" When Harry nodded in confirmation, the Doctor lead Martha away quickly without another word.

As Romana watched him walk away she was a whirlwind of emotions and confusion. Sure, she and the Doctor had the semblance of a relationship in the past but that was a very long time ago. She wasn't a young, inexperienced Time Lady anymore, she was the former President of Gallifrey. Plus she didn't think her current incarnation was going to be much of a romantic, certainly not in her current mental state anyway, "Romana, you feeling alright?" Harry asked.

"Course I am", she replied briskly, "what did you want to talk about?"

"Could we talk inside your TARDIS?" Ron stated. Romana huffed but slowly led the teen wizards back towards her ship, "So you and the Doctor", Ron continued, beginning a conversation that Romana didn't really want to have, "is he your boyfriend or something?"

"I think the Doctor's a little old to be called a boyfriend Ronald", Romana snorted. "If you must know we had a relationship once but that was a very long time ago".

"Looks like he was keen to continue", Harry added.

"Relationships are different between Time Lords", Romana answered, "on Gallifrey you rarely married for love. Marriages were political conveniences or to join two houses together".

"Sounds like pureblood politics to me", Ron shrugged. Romana hadn't really thought about it like that before but the red head had summed up Gallifrey pretty well. Romana knew that the Doctor had been married before but it wasn't a particularly happy marriage. That was about all she could get out of him about his former betrothed. The only good thing he had to say about that period of his life revolved around his granddaughter. "But you and the Doctor weren't on Gallifrey at the time though", he continued.

Romana grumbled, this wasn't a conversation she wanted to have with Harry and Ron, "Can we drop it", she snapped, "I refuse to talk about my ancient history with you two".

The awkward silence returned as the trio wandered towards the TARDIS. Romana's thoughts drifted again to her past, wondering what her life would've been like if she hadn't been paired with the Doctor to locate the Key to Time. Nowhere near as exciting she mused and she probably wouldn't have ascended to the Presidency. Her association with Gallifrey's most famous son made her well liked amongst the average Time Lord. It was a bitter irony that without the Doctor, she probably would've been a faceless Time Lord slaughtered by the Daleks or would've burned with the rest of the planet when The Moment was used by the renegade.

As she approached her TARDIS, Romana could see a group of people gathered outside. A frown etched into her features as she recognised some of the people in the crowd, "Dare I ask what this is about?" she hissed, her mind instantly going to a dark place.

"We've been talking to the Order", Harry began, "and they want to know more about you, the real you that is".

"They've been filled in on the basics, about how you came to be Hermione", Ron continued, "but they want to know about who you were before".

"They want to know if I'm dangerous", Romana replied darkly, "well I can save them some time, I'm extremely dangerous".

"Romana that's not true", Harry stated, "you're hiding behind some dark and brooding mask. Letting some people see behind it might do you some good". Romana grumbled, trust Harry to choose this moment to become emotional perceptive. His comments echoed the Doctor too, it wouldn't do her any good to become isolated from people who only wanted to get to know her.

Getting closer to the red telephone box that disguised her TARDIS, Romana could see a fair crowd gathered outside. There were the familiar faces of Neville, Luna and Ginny along with Tonks and Kingsley Shacklebolt. The rest of the Weasley's were there too, including a reluctantly looking Molly and Bill's wife Fleur. Mr Weasley was slowly circling the TARDIS trying to find his way inside, "This is utterly amazing", he began, "it looks just like one of those fellytone boxes I've seen in the village".

"I think you mean telephone Mr Weasley", Romana greeted with a smile. Mr Weasley's enthusiasm for all things muggle was truly infectious, although if a basic telephone amazed him he was in for a surprise when smartphones arrived in about fifteen years time. "The TARDIS is meant to disguise itself as something native to the area to avoid detection", Romana continued, "quite why she insists on a phone box is anyone's guess".

"You speak as if it's alive", Fleur asked curiously.

"All TARDIS's are alive in a sense", Romana answered the Frenchwoman, "the artificial intelligence indeed to traverse the time vortex is so powerful that it develops sentience". Seeing that she had lost many people with those words, she decided to move on, "What is it you're all looking for?" she asked.

"Answers", Kingsley replied simply.

"Very well", Romana placed a key into the TARDIS lock, "and what if you don't like the answers I give?"

"We'll cross that bridge if necessary", the new Minister of Magic replied with his deep voice.

Romana wasn't sure if she liked that answer but trusted that she had enough allies to prevent any serious harm from coming to her. She pushed the TARDIS door open and stepped aside, "Welcome aboard and please don't touch anything", she aimed that more towards Mr Weasley, "you could do some serious damage to the universe by pushing the wrong button". Romana realised that wasn't the best thing to say to a group of sceptics but she wasn't going to lie to them. Allowing an apologetic looking Harry and Ron into the ship, Romana took a deep breath and followed after them.


	25. This Is Your Life

_Chapter 25 – This Is Your Life_

Allowing the gaggle of witches and wizards into her TARDIS first, Romana allowed them a couple of moments to look around. The impact of the 'bigger on the inside' nature of the ship was lost on the group, the wizarding world's expansion charms made the internal dimensions of the TARDIS seem normal. The centre console and time rotor though was gaining some attention, the circuitry and technology was probably more advanced than some had seen in their entire lives. As she carefully closed the door she heard a comment from Mrs Weasley, "Doesn't feel very homely".

Romana had to laugh, that probably wasn't something anyone had said about a TARDIS ever. "This is just the control room Mrs Weasley", Romana replied, "there's further living spaces through the door over there", she pointed towards the opening at the far end of the ship.

"How big is this thing?" Tonks asked.

"Infinite, in theory at least", Romana shrugged, "some Time Lords were know to get lost inside their ships". The Time Lady slowly approached the console and flicked a couple of switches which illuminated the walls of the TARDIS, "So the boys said you wanted to talk", she perched herself on the console, "where did you want to begin?"

The Time Lady watched as the older members of the Order looked amongst themselves, clearly deciding who was going to speak first, "Time Lords and your home planet", Kingsley spoke for the group, "can you tell us more?"

Breathing a sigh of relief that their first question wasn't about the War, Romana lifted a small panel on the console. The Type 80 TARDIS had a special feature which allowed her thoughts to be projected onto the walls of the ship. It would be much easier to show everyone than using her words. The walls changed to show the surface of Gallifrey with its long red grass and silver trees. A stab of pain shot through Romana's hearts, seeing images of her lost home was going to hurt for a long time, "It's beautiful", Luna gasped.

"I've never seen anything like this", Bill marvelled, "this is truly spectacular".

"Oh you should've been the view over the mountains when the suns rose", Romana gave a watery smile. Almost on cue the images change to reflect her thoughts, "Wait for it", he pointed at the second sun about to rise. The inky darkness of the sky gave way to a flash of red as the first of the morning rays hit the surface, "Truthfully though Time Lords never ventured too far out from the city", she continued, "we preferred the comfort and security of the dome".

Zooming out from the mountains, the group found themselves looking down over the domed capital of Gallifrey, "Merlin", Mr Weasley wheezed, "this place is enormous".

"Yes it was", Romana sank into herself, "the shining world of the seven galaxies they called it". She held back a tear, refusing to show weakness in front of this group, "But as I said it's gone now, taking most of my people with it".

Romana felt Harry and Ron close ranks but she mentally pushed them away, this was part of her healing was for her to experience alone, "You mentioned a war", Kingsley continued, asking the question Romana knew was going to come up at some point.

"A terrible war yes", Romana took a couple of deep breathes, "between my people and the Daleks". Her thoughts drifted towards those days which unfortunately had an effect on the projection. On the walls a couple of Daleks appeared, their eye stalks glowing menacingly as they seemed to roll in her direction.

Instantly Romana recoiled and went for her weapon, a habit brought on by years of battle. Her arms were shaking violently but the Daleks didn't get any closer. The Time Lady suddenly remembered that she was safe in her TARDIS and these weren't real Daleks. Lowering her weapon, she hung her head, "I'm sorry but could we talk about something else", she whispered, "I'm not ready to relive the death of billions just yet".

There was a tense silence as Romana carefully re-holstered her weapon but their thoughts were easy to read, a mixture of pity and shared pain. She slowed her heartbeats with a couple of deep breathes and forces a few loose strands of hair back into her ponytail. Ready to face everyone again she slowly raised her head. Most were looking at her with sympathy, especially Mrs Weasley. Kingsley was proving harder to read, his occulmancy shields must be strong to resist a Time Lady, "I'm sorry for shouting at you", Tonks mumbled, "I don't think we truly understood".

Romana wanted to shout at the woman, berate the metamorph for disbelieving her suffering. She held her tongue though, remembering that it was a difficult time for everyone. Death and grief wasn't something that only she could experience, "Heat of the moment, all forgotten about", she said quickly.

"Tell them about regeneration", Ron injected, saving Romana from further embarrassing questions, "this bit is really cool".

"Alright", Romana gave him a warm smile, "regeneration is something unique to Time Lords. When our body dies, either through old age or physical damage, we can repair or regenerate ourselves into something new".

"When your body dies?" Mrs Weasley gasped, "so you've died before?"

"Three times technically", Romana shrugged off the woman's surprise, "Time Lord's get thirteen lives, I am the fourth incarnation of Romanadvoratrelundar".

Deciding it would easier to show everyone, she focused on her original incarnation. A striking beautiful brunette appeared on the walls dressed in a long flowing white gown which gave the air of a Disney princess. Romana gazed longingly at her original body, although the arrogant smirk on the projections face made her feel a little uncomfortable, "Wow, is this you?" Fleur asked with an air of awe, "you were absolutely striking".

"And I'm not now?" Romana half chuckled, drawing a defensive reaction from the Frenchwoman, "it's fine Fleur I was joking but yes this is my original incarnation". This Romana had probably been the most academic of her lives so far and wasn't afraid of letting everyone know it, "An overachiever at school, fairly bossy and disappointed if she didn't get full marks on her homework", she turned to the group, "sound familiar?"

"Just like Hermione", Bill nodded, "you said that you turned yourself human, could you explain that a little more".

Romana nodded, "Time Lords created a little known piece of technology called a Chameleon Arch. It rewrote your genetic structure and memories to make you appear human". She reached into her pocket to retrieve the golden fob watch, "Your Time Lord essence was locked away inside this until the moment was right to open the watch". She fondled the brass watch in her hand, "I'm sorry that Hermione had to die, I created her life just so I could survive".

"I'm sure she wouldn't have objected", Neville interrupted the Time Lady's tirade, "she was extremely selfless and would've given her life to help others".

"Thank you Neville", Romana smiled weakly and placed the watch back into her pocket. Turning her attention back to the image on the walls of the TARDIS, the Time Lady finished recounting her personal history, "Not long after graduating the Academy, I was selected for a mission to reassemble the Key to Time". The image updated itself to show a near translucent cube made up of several segments, "It doesn't look like much", she continued, "but this key could rewrite the very fabric of the universe".

"What happened to it?" Mr Weasley asked in awe of the small yet apparently powerful cube.

"Scattered throughout the universe", Romana answered, "it's simply too powerful to keep fully assembled in one place". The image of the first Romana disappeared from screen and another image began to form, "Unfortunately several events involving the key and other influences which are too complicated to explain led to my first regeneration".

A slighter shorter woman appeared on the walls, slightly younger than the first Romana with strawberry blonde hair. She was 'cuter' than the brunette Time Lady but still very attractive, "My second incarnation", Romana smiled, "oh I did love that outfit". She still remembered picking it out, a rough approximation of the clothes commonly worn by the Fourth Doctor except in different shades of pink and with a long white scarf.

"How many times did you trip over that scarf?" the usually clumsy Tonks asked with a half smile.

"Not as much as you'd think", Romana shrugged, "not as many times as the Doctor tripped over his". The image shifted to include the Fourth Doctor standing alongside Romana, "Not that he'd admit it if you asked him", she added with a small chuckle.

"Wow regeneration has definitely been kind to the Doctor", Harry whistled.

"Oh the images I could show you about that man", Romana smirked evilly. She checked the door, making sure that the aforementioned Time Lord wasn't about to enter, "Maybe when we get through this I can show you". She paused to allow herself to regain her original train of thought, "This Romana has been the longest lived so far and went through many adventures".

Various different events from the second Romana's life flashed up on screen, everything from Paris and the Mona Lisa's through her time in E-Space. She glossed over her twenty years in captivity at the hands of the Daleks, instead focusing on her ascendency to the Presidency of Gallifrey. Everyone had a good laugh at the ceremonial robes and headdresses associated with the office. Even Romana had to admit they looked pretty ridiculous on her.

With tales of the second Romana running out, it was only natural that conversation would shift back to the Time War. Romana paused and steeled herself for revisiting that dark period of her life, "With War on the horizon I knew this version of Romana would never be able to lead a planet into battle", she sighed. "I wasn't decisive or ruthless enough to be the right leader for my people and with my current body wearing thin, I opted to regenerate into someone better suited for the role".

The second Romana disappeared and was replaced by a taller woman with jet black hair. She was the oldest looking Romana, somewhere in her late thirties or early forties by human standards. This Romana wore olive green Army style trousers with a heavy looking pair of boots. A tan coloured jacket covered a plain black top and in her hand rested the same sonic blaster that currently rested on the TARDIS console, "I give you the War Queen of Gallifrey", Romana stated bitterly, "I wanted to be a powerful warrior and I was but the expense was my humility and compassion for all living things".

"She's scary", Ginny commented, "surely that's an exaggeration Romana".

"I wish it was", Romana chewed on her lip for a moment, "that woman is probably responsible, directly or indirectly, for the deaths of more sentient life forms than Voldemort and his Death Eaters".

Romana allowed that to sink in for a moment, all the time waiting for the inevitable looks of revulsion. The Doctor might have the destruction of Gallifrey on his conscience but Romana's felt just as guilty. Her sole focus was total victory, no matter the cost and in the end, it cost her almost everything she held dear. "War does terrible things to a person", Kingsley deep voice rumbled throughout the TARDIS, "I might not know much about these Daleks but judging by your reaction earlier, they must be pretty terrible".

"That's an understatement", Romana snorted, "during one battle a Dalek wiped out an entire Time Lord legion and then half the population of the planet we were fighting on". She shifted uncomfortable on the console, "We didn't even destroy it in the end, Dalek Command decided that it would be better used slaughtering another planet". She chuckled darkly, "Can you image that, those people were deemed too insignificant but one Dalek still slaughtered a billion people".

A dark silence fell on the TARDIS as Romana waited for a reaction. Eventually it was Mrs Weasley who stepped forward and the Time Lady braced herself for a verbal tirade. To her immense surprise the matriarch of the Weasley family wrapped her up in one of her trademark hugs, "You poor thing", she whispered. Romana didn't know how to react, standing stiffly throughout the embrace, "I can't begin to imagine what you've been through".

"Thank you Mrs Weasley but at the risk of sounding impolite I'm not looking for sympathy", Romana responded, "all I want to do is live my life and help out where I can".

"Well I might be able to help with that", Kingsley began, "I will need a new liaison with the muggle government, perhaps that's something you'd be interested in".

"Me?" Romana responded sounding a little confusion, "I'll be honest Kingsley I'm not overly familiar with human politics".

"But it sounds like you were a politician of sorts", he countered, "it's clear to me that the wizarding world doesn't understand the planet as a whole. What better person to cut through the political spin than a former President of an entire planet".

Romana was too stunned to respond for a moment, after everything she explained they still wanted her to perform some kind of role in the rebuilding process. A small tear of happiness welled up in the Time Lady's eye which she tried to subtly wipe away, "Alright but I do have one condition", Kingsley nodded for her to continue, "I want the freedom to come and go as I please. I don't fancy getting tied down to a desk and working nine to five".

"As long as you're there when I need you Romana, you can do as much or as little as you can", Kingsley nodded. She reached into his robes and retrieved the small metal sphere which contained the pocket dimension housing the Death Eaters, "Which brings us on to this", he continued.

"I was wondering when we'd get on to this", Romana nodded, "have you thought of what to do with those inside".

"I have a few ideas", Kingsley began, "as participants in the Battle of Hogwarts they will be automatically sentenced to life imprisonment. The true question is what to do with the prison", he held up the object and handed it over to Romana, "I trust you can find a somewhere suitable in the universe to put this".

The Time Lady smiled, "I have an idea or two", almost immediately she began thinking about some of the worst places in the universe to keep this little sphere, preferably somewhere far away from any potential Death Eater wannabes.

"Right now that's settled", Ron clapped his hands together, "I believe you promised us some dirt on the Doctor".

Once again Romana smiled evilly, "I did", she began to think very hard, "shall we begin with his fashion choices over the years". She didn't want to admit it but the Doctor was right, surrounding herself with people was definitely the best way to begin the healing process.


	26. Casualty

_Chapter 26 – Casualty_

The group of witches and wizards stayed inside Romana's TARDIS for around an hour as the Time Lady filled them in on several aspects of her people. The brunette felt genuinely pleased that so many of Hermione's friends were taking to the change so easily. Perhaps she was too quick to judge them after their outburst during the Battle of Hogwarts. Romana should've known better, the pressures of battle were all too familiar to the Time Lady.

The conversation was halted by a gentle knocking at the door, "Who could that be?" Harry asked.

"Probably the Doctor dropping by", Romana shrugged, "he probably knows we've been talking about him". The Time Lady searched around to find the person nearest the door, "Tonks do me a favour and let him in".

The metamorph complied and pushed open the inner door to the time ship. There wasn't anyone outside though, instead a small black box floated into the console room, "What's that?" Tonks asked as the cube hovered passed.

"Communication device", Romana responded, "Time Lords can wrap their thoughts up into boxes like these and send them to each other". The Time Lady knew who the likely sender of the cube was, however, she still looked for a mark when it arrived in her hand. Sure enough there was a question mark on one side of the cube, "It's from the Doctor", she continued, "must be getting lazy in his old age".

Romana held the box in her open palm and allowed the Doctor's thoughts to enter her mind, _"Come to the infirmary, quickly as you can"._

The cube disappeared and the Time Lady allowed the words to sink in for a moment, "He wants us to come to the infirmary". The Weasley clan immediately feared the worst, it was written clearly across their face. None more so that George, the other half of the Weasley twins had been unusually quiet over the last hour. Without waiting for anyone else, the red head bolted out the TARDIS in a sprint, "George, wait", Romana called out but it was no use, he was already half way to the castle.

A sense of panic ran through the group and they too began to scramble out the time ship. Romana waited for everyone to depart before leaving herself and locking the door. She wasn't quick enough to catch up with George, however, she was definitely leading the follow up charge through the stone corridors of the castle. The convoy bumped a few people out the way but there was no time to follow apologies.

Romana burst through the infirmary door, closely followed by Ron, Ginny and Bill. They were greeted by a frantic looking Madam Pomfrey waving her wand across the body of Fred Weasley. More concerning was the actions of Martha who was performing heart compressions on the prone wizard, "Doctor what's happening?" Romana asked sharply.

"Everyone out", Madam Pomfrey barked, "this is a place of rest not a dance floor".

"Not until you tell me what's wrong with my brother", George snapped back.

"He suddenly became tachycardic and began to have a fit", Martha stated, "now we can't find a pulse-".

"Oh my baby", Mrs Weasley wailed. She rushed towards her son, however, Romana held her back, "Out of my way, right now", she cried in the Time Lady's face.

"With respect Mrs Weasley unless you're a trained professional there's nothing you can do", Romana replied firmly, "I'm sure he's in very capable hands with Doctor Jones here".

Martha looked up nervously, "Actually", she began to say she wasn't a fully qualified doctor yet but both Romana and the Doctor firmly shook their heads. She quickly adjusted her words, "If you could give me room to work that would be great".

Several agonising minutes passed as Martha and the Hogwarts matron worked frantically. The Weasley paced nervously other than George, who stood grimly over the top of his twin brother almost too scared to move. After what felt like an age the matron spoke, "I've got a heartbeat but it's fairly weak", Madam Pomfrey began grimly, "I'm going to place Mr Weasley into a magical status to prevent his condition from worsening". She raised her wand and said to Martha, "Please stand to one side Doctor Jones".

Martha did as she was instructed and cleared away from the bed. A slither of silver light washed over Fred and Romana was almost certain she saw his body relax. The Time Lady gentle grabbed hold of the Doctor's arm and lead him away from the bed, allowing the Weasley's and their circle of friends to be alone with Fred, "Be honest with me Doctor, what are his chances?"

The Time Lord stiffened slightly before reluctantly answering, "Without knowing his full medical background I can't be sure. Even then my medical knowledge isn't fantastic, we'd need to find-" he suddenly paused and looked over Romana's shoulders, "hold that thought, Martha could you come over here for a second".

Romana slowly caught onto the Doctor's train of thought as his companion slowly shuffled over, "I tried my best Doctor", she said glumly.

"I know Martha I couldn't have asked for more", he replied, "Romana and I need a medical opinion about Fred condition".

The medical student looked a little surprised at the Time Lord's request and Romana could sense her hesitancy, "It's alright we know you haven't had long to examine the patient", she tried to put the young woman at ease, "just your first thoughts and impressions will do".

Martha nodded slowly and began her diagnosis, "From what Madam Pomfrey told me, Fred suffered massive head trauma". She paused and shook her head, "I can't believe I'm doing a medical report on one of the Weasley's".

"Martha", the Doctor warned, "focus", he added kindly.

"Right, sorry", she continued, "this fit today is the first occurrence, however, the patient has been unresponsive to external stimuli". She looked back over Fred's fallen body, "Madam Pomfrey's done a few scans but if he was my patient, I would run an MRI scan". The medical student snorted loudly, "Unfortunately we're not going to find one lying around Hogwarts".

The two Time Lords looked at each other, both of them having a very similar idea, "An MRI scanner is essentially a very big magnet, right Doctor?" Romana asked.

"Exactly Romana", the Time Lord stated, "with the right tuning equipment", he wiggled his sonic screwdriver, "we could turn several ordinary magnets into a working scanner". He pulled a strange face before waving the idea off, "Nah it's not going to work, the ambient magic in the air will interfere with the polarity of the magnets".

A small grin flashed across Romana's face, "Aren't you forgetting Doctor, my dimensional portal machine is fully calibrated to function within the castle".

There was a momentary pause before the Doctor grinned broadly, "Oh Romana you are bloody brilliant", he grasped her cheeks and pressed a firm kiss to her forehead, "I don't think I've told you that enough over the years".

"No you probably haven't", Romana smirked, "now shall we get busy before everyone thinks we've lost our minds". The pair looked over and spotted that the gathered Weasley were staring with a mixture of confusion and annoyance. Sheepishly the Time Lord and Lady apologised before stepping out the room.

About ten minutes later the Doctor returned with two fairly hefty magnets just as Romana wheeled in the remains of her portal device from the Great Hall. Fortunately the clean up teams had left almost everything intact, probably fearing what would happen if they incorrectly disassembled the parts. Romana reconfigured the archway, although she reduced the size to allow it to fit closely around Fred's head. The Doctor carefully placed the magnets in the appropriate place, making sure to name drop several physicists that he had encountered over the years. Romana politely yet firmly told him to stop showing off and focus, earned a small pout of annoyance from the Time Lord.

After several minutes of frantic action the Doctor and Romana stepped back to admire their handiwork. The mixture of metal trestles, silvery coloured magnets and electrical wiring wasn't going to win any style awards, however, it was perfectly functional. At least they hoped it was, "Are you sure this is going to work?" Martha asked nervously.

"Absolutely", the Doctor replied, "well, probably", he added with less enthusiasm, "fairly likely".

"What the Doctor is trying to say", Romana shot the Time Lord a piercing glare, "is that we have every confidence in the theory".

Martha though didn't look convinced and truthfully, neither did the anyone else in the room, "I don't trust muggles with this type of thing", Mrs Weasley began hesitantly, "always coming up with barbaric solutions like stitching wounds up with thread".

"Now Molly", Mr Weasley interjected, "will this procedure hurt my son?"

"Arthur you can't be seriously considering this?" Mrs Weasley hissed.

The head of the Weasley family sighed, "At this point Molly I'm willing to try anything, it can't hurt to let the Doctor take a look". He leaned over towards the Time Lords, "This magnet thing can actually show us Fred's brain".

"At least it'll confirm that he's got one", George snorted with a dry and dark sense of humour, "I agree with Dad, if it's not a painful and invasive thing then what's the harm?"

There was a quiet murmuring from the others and seeing that she was outnumbered, Mrs Weasley offered a defeated sigh, "Fine, do what you have to do".

"Thank you Molly", the Doctor smiled warmly, "Romana could you pull that screen over, we can use it as a projection screen". The Time Lady nodded but grumbled under her breath, she wasn't willing to be reduced to the Doctor's assistant once again, "Hang on I wasn't done yet", the Time Lord said impatiently. Romana blushed slightly, realising she had been broadcasting her thoughts, "My sonic can run the scanner but we need yours to act as the projector".

"My apologies Doctor", Romana nodded slowly. As instructed she pulled the screen over and waited for the Doctor to power up the magnets. There was a gently hum as the current began to pass through the device and Romana relaxed slightly. She didn't mention it earlier but the worst case scenario was that the magnets would become overpowered and attract every piece of metal within the castle.

After receiving a small nod from the Doctor, Romana found the appropriate setting on her screwdriver and pointed it towards the sheet, "I warn you Martha the images won't be as clear as you're used to ", the Time Lady stated.

Martha didn't responded though, instead she was carefully studying the projected images. Romana wasn't an expert in human biology but even she knew something didn't look right. Glancing over at Doctor, she spotted a similar grim look which must've mirrored her own, "You see something don't you?" Ron asked, "I can see if written on your faces".

"I'm sorry but there's no easy way to say this", Martha began slowly but Fred appears to have suffered something known as a diffuse axonal brain injury". Romana's head bowed, she knew it was something serious, "The way to think about the human brain is like a jelly inside a glass jar", the junior doctor continued, "if there's a blow to the head then it can rattle around inside the skull".

"Not quite sure if that's how I'd put it", the Doctor shuffled uncomfortably on the spot.

The young doctor glared at the Time Lord before continuing, "Anyway as I was saying when this happens the entire surface of the brain suffered rapid trauma from the sudden movement".

"But you can fix it", Ginny asked hopefully.

Romana though like the Doctor and Martha knew differently, "Unfortunately no", she sighed, "ninety percent of all patients with this type of injury never recover". There were a few gentle sobs from the group as the terrible news sunk in, "I'm sorry I wish I could give you better news".

The Time Lady could feel the grief filling the room, amplified as Mrs Weasley burst into tears. Romana looked at the floor, suddenly feeling very uncomfortable, "We'll leave you alone for a few minutes", the Doctor stated and shut down the scanner with his screwdriver.

As the Doctor and Martha slowly left the infirmary, Romana followed after them. She really wished that she could do something for Fred, however, even this one seemed beyond her. Judging by the conversation just down the corridor Martha had the same idea, "The only real hope is to regenerate his brain tissue but that's impossible".

"During this time period it is", the Doctor replied, "medical technology won't advance that far for several centuries to come. Even then the science won't be perfected for millennia". Romana wouldn't realise it for a few days but these words planted a small seed inside her mind. For now though she was lost in sympathy for the Weasley's for their fallen family member who would was unlikely to ever recover from his injuries.


	27. I Need A Little Time

_Chapter 27 – I Need A Little Time_

The devastating news about Fred Weasley's injuries struck Romana like a sledgehammer. She knew that his road to recovery would be slow and questionable but she never expected a diagnosis like that. The Time Lady hadn't interacted much with the Doctor current companion but something told her she was correct. The Time Lord tended to pick his travelling company with great care so she had to trust Martha's medical knowledge and experience.

Romana found herself numbly following the Doctor and Martha out of the castle and back across the Hogwarts grounds. The Time Lord was a few paces in front with Romana walking silently next to the human, "He doesn't talk much about himself", Martha commented, "hardly ever talked about his home planet". A frown crossed her face, "In fact I don't even think he's mentioned it before".

Gallifrey, just thinking about home was another body blow for Romana. She resisted showing any emotion in front of Martha though, if the Doctor hadn't mentioned their home it was probably for a good reason, "He hasn't visited in a very long time", Romana choked out, "he was never a fan, far too boring and stuffy for his tastes".

"Do you reckon he'll take me?" Martha asked brightly, "I've always wondered what's out there".

Romana didn't want to burst the human's bubble, she seemed so enthusiastic that it must be early into her travels with the Doctor, "I'm sure he'll tell you more about it in due course", she neatly deflected the question and changed the subject, "have you been travelling with the Doctor long?"

"Second trip", Martha answered, "met Shakespeare and saved the world from some alien witches, guess Hogwarts and Harry Potter was a natural link". Romana gave her a small smile, that sounded like an average Saturday for the Time Lord, "I met the Doctor at my hospital", Martha continued without being prompted, "the whole building got sucked up onto the Moon in this weird water thingy".

"A Hydro Scoop?" Romana interjected, "what the hell were the Judoon thinking, stealing an entire building off a planet".

Martha offered a soft chuckle in response, "You sound just like him, do all Time Lords speak like you two?"

"Like we're the most intelligent creatures in the room?" Romana sniffed, "we do and there's a very good reason for that Doctor Jones".

The human woman stared blankly and shrugged, "Which is?"

"We are the most intelligent creatures in the room", Romana shrugged, "don't mistake that for arrogance", she continued, "it can't be arrogance if it's true". Martha's smiled tightly and the Time Lady knew she had made the woman feel uncomfortable. Interacting with humans had always been the Doctor's primary job. Romana did get better during their travels but centuries isolated on Gallifrey away from the rest of the universe had seen her slip back into old habits. She would have to work on that if she was going to be some kind of liaison between wizards and the rest of humanity.

Deciding there was no time like the present she tried to engage Martha in conversation again, "So what's your home time period, you can't be that far from home".

"Well the Doctor met me in 2008 if that's what you're referring to", Romana nodded in response and tried to recall if anything of importance happened in that year. Weirdly nothing obvious came to mind, it was like something had blanked all of Earth's history for that year from the timestream. "Nothing exciting happened so far, other than the rhino aliens on the Moon", Martha added, "oh and there's an election soon, the polls say that Harold Saxon's going to win by the biggest landslide ever".

"Saxon you say", Romana mulled that name over in her head but she drew a blank, "can't say I've heard of him, then again not everyone can be a Churchill or Thatcher".

"He's not infamous either which has to count for something", Martha added and the Time Lady slowly agreed. The human quickly turned the conversation away from Harold Saxon, "So did you travel with the Doctor too? Must be pretty common, Time Lords travelling around with each other"

"For a period", Romana began, "actually two Time Lords travelling together doesn't happen that often, the Doctor is somewhat of an anomaly in that sense". Romana sensed the curiosity in the woman and continued elaborating, "Most Time Lords never leave the planet so in that sense the Doctor is a little bit of a rebel. Plus two Time Lords together, one TARDIS would struggle to contain all that ego".

Martha snorted with laughter, "But you two managed for a time though", Romana nodded in confirmation, "would you do it again if he asked?"

Romana could feel the underlying sentiment in the human's question, Martha really didn't want the answer to be yes. She suspected some underlying romantic intentions from the human towards the Time Lord. Romana wasn't too surprised, she wasn't totally immune to the Doctor's charm. "Perhaps but not right now", she answered and waited for Martha's relief to pass, "last time I travelled with the Doctor I was a completely different person, quite literally in fact".

There was a curious glance from Martha towards Romana, "He hasn't told you about regeneration then", the human shook her head, "typical of him, always waits to the last possible moment". She took a moment before continuing, "Time Lords have this unique ability, when they die or are close to death they can health themselves by regenerating into another body. Their outward features and surface personality will change but underneath will remain exactly the same".

Explaining the nuances of regeneration to a human wasn't easy and it appeared to be taking Martha a few moments to process the information, "So the Doctor's done this regeneration thing before?"

"Several times", Romana answered, "I believe this is the Tenth incarnation of the Doctor". She knew it wasn't strictly true but something told her that the Time Lord wasn't willing to acknowledge the existence of his war time incarnation.

"What about you Romana?" Martha asked, "you look far too young to have regenerated before".

Romana snorted, "Four hundred years might be young for a Time Lady but not quite as young as this", she ran her hands in the area of her body, "three times, I'm on my fourth incarnation".

"Oi what are you two gossiping about?" the Doctor called out, "fancy a look around the old girl Romana?"

She had been so busy talking to Martha that she hadn't noticed they were walking towards the Doctor's TARDIS. The old Type 40 looked almost exactly the same as she had done all those centuries ago. A couple of cosmetic differences but like their pilots even TARDIS's succumbed to vanity. Romana carefully approached the ancient ship and gently placed her hand on the exterior. Almost immediately she felt a familiar hum from the TARDIS. If Romana didn't know any better she could've sworn that the old girl was happy to see here again.

Shaking herself free of revelry Romana crossed the threshold of the doorway and entered the Doctor's TARDIS. She took a good couple of moments to take in her surroundings as the interior was much different than she remembered. Gone was the stark white interior and the cosy console room and in their place where bronze walls held up with coral pillars. The room had been greatly enlarged with the hexagonal console sitting in the middle. The central console appeared to be in a bad way though, several thick cables ran from the ceiling and across the desktop, "Been doing a little bit of DIY Doctor?" Romana asked, playing with one of the wires.

"Not too many garages around for Type 40 TARDIS's", the Doctor replied sadly, "not anymore at least". Romana nodded glumly, she was encountering the same problem with her much newer TARDIS. In a few centuries she could image her console would be in a similar state.

The TARDIS door closed quietly and Martha inched her way towards the Time Lords. Romana felt her presence tinged with a fair share of awkwardness, "Erm is there a bathroom around here", the human asked, "I could do with freshening up".

"Straight down the corridor, eighteenth corridor on the right", the Doctor replied absently, allowing Martha to navigate her way through the bowels of the ship, "she'll be fine, the TARDIS won't allow her to get lost", he added, asking a question Romana didn't ask.

"Surprisingly Doctor I do know how a TARDIS works", the Time Lady replied pointedly.

The Doctor sighed, "I'm sorry Romana it's been a while since I had another Time Lord onboard". Romana winced internally but the TARDIS hummed gently, soothing the Time Lady's fragile nerves, "She still likes you, I reckon the old girl's happier to see you than I am".

"Probably happy to have a competent driver in her presence once again", Romana stated with a cheeky smile. The Doctor briefly looked offended and pouted but the Time Lady saw right through this facade, "Doctor it's true and you know it", she added, running her hands respectfully along the console.

"You could fly her again", the Time Lord tempted her, "one quick trip, no one would notice".

Romana sighed and perched herself on one of the jump seats near the console. She was sorely tempted by the Doctor offer but she couldn't leave now. Kingsley job offer along with Fred's illness meant that she was needed here more than ever. At least that's how she justified it in her own mind.

It wasn't just those reasons though, she had escaped from the deadliest war known to all creations with her life. She was one of the last of her kind and feeling more than a little lost. Romana had spent most of her life in service to others, the Academy, the people of Gallifrey and even the Doctor to an extent. It was time to find out who she really was, "When you first left Gallifrey, what did you want to achieve?" she asked after several moments.

The Doctor frowned and sat down in the seat next to Romana, placing his feet up on the console, "Several things", he answered solemnly, "to explore the universe, to find a better life for Susan", he shifted uncomfortably thinking about his lost granddaughter. Romana gently rubbed her hand on his knee to soothe the bubbling sadness within the Time Lord, "I just wanted to do some good", he continued once he regained his composure, "be a kind person I suppose".

"Admirable goals", Romana nodded, "but I think I know the real reason", she paused and observed the frown on the Time Lord's face, "all those things have one thing in common, independence". The Doctor looked quizzical but didn't dismiss the idea outright, "A chance to choose your own destiny, forget about giving your life in servitude to Gallifrey and forge your own path in the universe". She sighed and looked towards the TARDIS ceiling, "That's what I want Doctor, I want to know who I truly am".

"I can tell you exactly who you are Romana", the Doctor began, "you are the woman who showed an egotistical Time Lord that he wasn't superior at everything".

"Hasn't dampened your ego though", she snorted with laughter.

The Time Lord paused and laughed along, "Fair point but look what else you accomplished when you were President. You did more to improve the lives of Time Lords and ordinary Gallifreyans than any other President in history".

"And that's great but I want to do more", Romana interrupted the Time Lord, "I want to impart some of my own kindness on the universe".

"Then come with me", the Doctor pleaded once again.

"I can't", Romana shouted in response, not realising how angry she sounded. For a brief moment the Doctor was shocked in silence, drawing an apologetic sigh from the Time Lady, "That's exactly why I can't come with you yet", she continued, "I'm still ready for battle and I need to begin small". She looked towards the TARDIS door, "I think this the wizarding world in the perfect place for me at the moment".

The Doctor nodded, reluctantly accepting wishes, "I'm sure I'll travel with you again Doctor", she gently placed her hand against his cheek, "when the time is right for both of us I'll come with you".

The Time Lord grasped Romana's hand, rubbed the back of her hand with his thumb, "The door's always open", he pressed his lips to her hand, the contact filling Romana's hearts with joy.

Romana suppressed a blush and allowed herself a moment to regain her composure, "So where next for you Doctor?" she asked.

"Ah you know me", he smiled, "always unpredictable. I fancy dropping in on New Earth actually, see if anything's changed since my last visit". Romana nodded in acknowledgement, she had never been to New Earth herself but had read about it during her time at the Academy, "What about you?"

"Not sure", Romana sighed, "I probably should tidy up the loose ends Hermione Granger left behind. I need to sort out her old house and think about what to do with her parents". Romana's mood darkened, she had been thinking about the Grangers a lot during her exile in the vortex but failed to come up with a solution.

Pushing that to one side for the moment she stood up from the seat and face the Doctor, "I guess this is goodbye for now Doctor", she opened her arms, inviting a hug which the Doctor gratefully accepted, "Try not to get yourself in too much trouble".

"Oh you know me Romana, I never go looking for trouble", the Time Lord smiled.

Romana chuckled and released her hold on the Doctor, "I meant what I said, I will travel with you again Doctor", a cheeky smirk flashed across her face, "probably should make it soon, you're running out of regenerations".

"Yeah, thanks for reminding me", the Doctor huffed, "now go before I throw you out", he added with mock anger.

The Time Lady skipped towards the door, "Farewell Lord Doctor, until next time", the Time Lord bowed as Romana closed the door behind her.

She took a couple of paces away from the TARDIS and waited for the familiar groan of the Doctor ship in flight. A small part of her wanted to jump back through the door but somehow she knew this was the right decision. The TARDIS groaned into life just as a small hyper cube floated into Romana's vision. She grasped the box and listened to the message in her mind, _"I will see you sooner than you think Romana",_ came the Doctor's cryptic parting words. Romana wondered what he meant by that but the TARDIS was long gone. She turned back towards the castle and set off at a slow amble. Her thought drifted back towards Fred Weasley with one goal in mind, find a permanent cure for the wizard.

 **END PART TWO**

 _ **A/N –**_ _We bid farewell to the Doctor for now. He will return but when he returns it won't be Ten...or Eleven...or Twelve. Bit of a wait for that though I'll warn you. I'll return with the next section sometime next week._


	28. Interlude 1

_Interlude 1_

After the Doctor departed, Romana retreated to her TARDIS for the remainder of the day. She pottered around the ship making a few running repairs and double checking that all systems were fully operational. Truthfully she was putting off any potential encounters with the Weasley family. She wanted to give them a little bit of privacy after Fred's diagnosis and some time to ingest the news.

The Time Lady was putting the finishing touches to the materialisation circuit when there was a gentle knocked on the door, "Can I come in?" Ron asked, poking his head into the ship.

"Course you can Ron", Romana adjusted a couple of parameters on the circuit as the red head approached the console. She didn't need to look at the teen to know how hopeless he felt, the negativity was pouring off him. Ron wasn't one to freely open himself up so Romana pretending to work on the ship whilst striking up a conversation, "How's Fred doing?"

"Comfortable" he replied with a hollow voice, "I take it the Doctor and Martha left?"

"I'm afraid so", Romana replied, still pretending to work on the ship, "he doesn't like to hang around in one place for too long".

There was a vague murmuring of acknowledgement from Ron and the Time Lady could sense him idly walking around the console. Several minutes passed before he engaged Romana in conversation again, "Could we go somewhere?" he asked, "not too far away, I just need to take my mind off everything".

Romana looked up and smiled warmly, carefully pocketing her screwdriver. Perhaps this would be a good time for her to do something she had been putting off for a while. Kill two birds with one stone so to speak, "Alright Ron there is something you could help me with", she noticed an intrigued look on the red head's face, "I need to finally close the chapter on Hermione Granger and I'd like your help".

She could feel Ron's confusion but to his credit he didn't display it externally, "You mean your parents, right?"

"Hermione's parents", Romana bluntly reminded him, "first port of call will be her old home though, I need to go through the contents and remove anything that doesn't belong".

"What sort of things?" Ron asked, "alien stuff?"

"Possibly", Romana shrugged, "who knows what the Rani left behind when she placed me with the Grangers, maybe there's some fragments of Gallifrey there as a reminder or memento". The Time Lady knew it was a long shot but she had to give it a try. Even if there wasn't anything from home inside the Granger's place, it was still important to visit and close that chapter of her life.

"Alright when do we set off?" Ron asked replied after deliberating for a couple of moments.

Romana gave him a sly smile and subtly pulled back on the main flight controls, "We've already arrived", she stated and promptly grabbed her blue coat from a nearby railing.

"But, what?" Ron stammered, "you can't just kidnap people like that".

"Hardly call it kidnapping Ronald", Romana snorted, "you're the one who wanted to get away from Hogwarts for a while". The Time Lady was practically at the door before Ron formulated a response but it fell on deaf ears. Quietly setting the TARDIS in flight without Ron noticing was probably a little naughty but she had only taken him across the country, not the other side of the galaxy.

Romana opened the door and stepped into the Granger's back garden, fully expecting to see the house from her human memories. What she actually saw was something completely different. The Granger's home was a burned out shell, a mass of charred brick and scorched grass. The windows were boarded up with metal shields to prevent anyone from accessing the property illegally and almost everywhere she looked, there was black and yellow caution tape.

Ron was still grumbling about his abduction when he finally caught up with Romana, his mindless muttering was interrupted by the remains of the house, "Bloody hell", he gasped, "there's nothing left".

The Time Lady nodded silently and quickly scanned the area with her screwdriver, "Faint magical signal", she commented, "based on degradation I'd estimate the happened around nine months ago".

"About the time of Bill's wedding", Ron added, "they must've come straight here looking for you when we escaped the party". Romana didn't correct Ron's statement since he technically fled the party with Hermione, instead she continued to scan the home for anything useful. The sonic confirmed what she already expected, there was absolutely nothing left inside. Anything that wasn't burned by the fire was probably excavated by the Police or Fire Service during their investigations.

Turning her attention to the immediate surroundings, it was obvious that the fire had spread into the garden. Some patches of land were damaged beyond use but in other parts, fresh grass and flowers were trying to emerge from the battered earth. Curiously the fire hadn't spread to the attached property to the left of the Granger's, the magical signature stopped at the garden fence. It confirmed her suspicion that this was a magical fire, _Fiendfyre_ most probably.

With nothing to be gained by standing around and staring at some burned out ruins, Romana quietly retreated to the TARDIS. She anticipated that the Granger's home would've been targeted by the Death Eaters but seeing the charred remains for herself made it real. It was strange, this wasn't really her home but for some reason she was deeply affected by the horrible sight. Perhaps this was a lingering effect of the Chameleon Arch. Romana knew that she would retain her human memories but she didn't expect them to be so vivid. Then again no Time Lord had used the Arch for eighteen years before, she was stepping into unchartered territory.

She sensed Ron closing the door behind her, "I can try and repair the damage", the wizard offered.

Romana smiled to herself but kept her body turned away from Ron, "Thank you for the offer Ron but it's just a pile of bricks plus magically repairing it could breach the Statute of Secrecy".

"Oh yeah", Ron answered weakly, "are you alright Romana, you've gone awfully quietly".

The Time Lady wanted to scream exactly how she felt, bombarded by strange human feelings and emotions that she didn't understand all whilst trying to assimilate nearly two decades of foreign memories into her sub conscious. She held those thoughts in though, getting angry wouldn't solve again, "Absolutely fine", she replied and walked towards the console, "best check that no harm's come to the Grangers in the last few months". Romana silently inputted their next destination of Melbourne all whilst trying to avoid Ron's gaze. Despite appearances the red head did an emotional range greater than a teaspoon. He probably knew something was wrong but chose not to comment, not for the moment at least.

A few moments later they arrived on the other side of the world. Stepping outside Romana briefly forgot that it would be daytime here and was temporarily dazzled by the sun. She wasn't the only one surprised by the sudden change in location, "Blimey it's warm here", Ron commented, shielding his eyes from the glare.

"And it's autumn here", Romana replied, "image how hot it'll be come summer". The TARDIS had landed on a hill overlooking a moderately sized settlement. In the distance she could see signs of a much larger city, which she assumed was central Melbourne. Desperately wanting to avoid further conversation, Romana quickly set off down the hill towards the town.

The streets were pretty quiet for this time of day, only a few cars went passed. At least Hermione picked a quiet location to hide her parents and there was on obvious sign of Death Eater activity. Just to be on the safe side she took some scans with the screwdriver which confirmed what she thought, nothing magical within a few miles of the town.

After walking for around half an hour Romana finally realised that she had no idea where to look. Searching through Hermione's memories she could only find reference to Melbourne, nothing specific about the exact location within the city. All she had to go was a couple of names amongst a city of millions. She was looking for a needle in the proverbial haystack. She couldn't even do a DNA scan because she wasn't a blood relative of the Grangers.

What Romana needed was a massive stroke of luck and moments later, that's exactly what she got, "Hey Romana over here", Ron called her over to a small shop front. The wizard pointed up at the sign, "Wilkins Dental Practice", he commented, "that's the name Hermione gave her parent right?"

"It was", Romana breathed a sigh of relief that something was finally going her way, "I'll go inside and check the place out".

"No need", Ron began, "I asked at reception and the Wilkins have the day off, they're doing something called Golf whatever that is".

Some more of Hermione's memories bubbled to the surface, Daniel Granger was a keen golfer at the weekends, a trait that remained in Wendall Wilkins. Jean Granger wasn't so keen on the sport though so it surprise her that she would be there too, "It's a sport Ron", Romana filled the wizard in, "you use a set of clubs to move a small ball down a course and into a hole at the end".

"Sounds weird", Ron turned up his nose at the sound of the sport.

"And Quiddich doesn't?" Romana raised an eyebrow, "a sport played on broom sticks with four balls".

Ron sniffed slightly, annoyed by the mocking of his favourite sport, "Whatever, the receptionist said the course was just around the corner".

The pair walked in silence and soon found themselves next to the golf course. There was a mesh fence separating blocking their path but you could easily see the perfectly maintained fairways through the openings. Romana looked around a couple of times to make sure no one was looking before pulling out her screwdriver. "Just need to find the right setting", she muttered and turned the device towards the thin metal fence. There was a muffled popping sound as the links began to snap until there was enough of a gap for them to squeeze through.

The wizard and the Time Lady tried to look as inconspicuous as possible but since they weren't really dressed for the weather, it was proving a little difficult. After one curious look too many Romana directed them towards the trees, hoping to sneak around the holes unseen by prying eyes. Apart from the rustling leaves underfoot, the only sound was the occasion whack of golf club on ball, "Is there an objective to this sport?" Ron asked curiously.

"You're asking the alien that question?" Romana sniffed, "seems like another human invention designed to do nothing but waste time". There was a loud cheer from the nearby fairway which grabbed the attention of the pair, "I think we might be in business", the Time Lady commented and pointed Ron towards the noise.

Pushing her way through the branches, Romana soon spotted their objective for the day. Wheeling their golf bags down the nearest fairway were Daniel and Jean Granger, or Wendall and Monica Wilkins as there were known here. She watched with interest as Mr Granger pulled a club out of his bag and lined up his next shot. With a swing of the club the ball disappeared and out of sight. The shot must've been good though as it earned a round of applause from Mrs Granger and a soft peck on the cheek.

Romana felt a small pang in her chest, the influence of her human memories. It was a minor inconvenience though and quickly she returned to analysing the situation scientifically. On the surface, the Grangers appeared to be happy with their new lifestyle. They had their own practice with enough time to go out and enjoy themselves and clearly they were still very much in love. If Romana was honest with herself, they looked happier than she recalled from her memories. Confident that the Granger's were safe and well, she gently released the branches and began to walk away, "We're leaving?" Ron called out, "again?"

Once again Romana walked away in silence, trying to ignore the internal influence of her human alter ego. If she had still been Hermione, she would've released the memory charm and been reunited with her family. Romana though was much more clinical about the situation. The Granger's had no home to return to in England and as it turned out, no daughter either. There didn't seem to be any logical reason to return their memories. "They didn't really look like you", Ron commented in his typically blunt manner, "never really noticed it until now".

Romana paused in her stride, "No I guess they didn't", both Granger's had brown hair but that's where the similarities ended. Neither Granger had overly frizzy hair or even the same eye colour as Romana. Maybe the Chameleon Arch prevented her from thinking of those questions, making the assimilation easier, "Did they seem happy to you Ron?" she asked after a brief period of silence.

"I think so", Ron shrugged, "I never really talked to Hermione's parents much so I'm probably not the best person to ask". Another awkward silence passed before Ron spoke again, "I take it we're leaving them in Australia?"

"I think it's for the best", Romana began, "here they've got a home, a business and a lifestyle they enjoy. If we break the memory charm all they have to return to is a burned out house and daughter who isn't really their daughter but a four hundred year old alien".

"Yeah when you put it like that", Ron scratched the back of his head uncomfortably, "won't their friends and family in England miss them?"

"Both their parents have passed away and they were both only children", Romana stated, "this is for the best Ron", she answered firmly.

"Alright if you say so", Ron shrugged as Romana began to slowly walk away, "are you alright Romana? I know we haven't known each other that long but even I can tell something is bugging you".

Romana paused and again suppressed a snort of laughter, Ron really had matured in the last few months, "I'm just struggling to figure myself out Ron", she sighed, "regenerating is hard enough but mine didn't occur in the normal way".

"I'm not sure I understand?" Ron frowned.

"Typically a Time Lord will have a period after regenerating to allow their new personally to settle", she explained, "not only that but we get to explore our new tastes, likes and dislikes. It's daunting yet also one of the most exciting periods of our lives". She let out a loud sigh, "My time under the Chameleon Arch robbed me of that, now I don't know if I'm just Hermione Granger with two hearts and centuries of memories or Romanadvoratrelundar with a human like personality".

Romana could see Ron thinking this over, she recognised his concentration face. She definitely felt more human this time, whether that was as a result of her human memories or a quirk of regeneration. The Doctor she just met seemed very human to her, much more human than previous incarnations, so perhaps it was a natural reaction to spending large amounts of time around the species.

After a lengthy pause Ron finally answered, "Why can't you be both?" he said with a shrug. Romana's wanted to jump in but the red head stopped her, "You can't truly change the past, not even with that fancy machine of yours right?"

A long and lengthy response about time streams and flexible points was on the tip of her tongue but for simplicity Romana stated, "Not unless you want to cause a paradox".

"Exactly so instead of worrying about what didn't happen, why don't you focus on what actually did happen?" Romana frowned slightly because it was a surprisingly simple way of thinking, a very human way of thinking, "It's like the dragon and the egg, no one really knows which one came first", he continued.

"Technically neither, dragons evolved from other egg laying species over thousands of years", Romana shrugged dismissively.

"Not the point I was trying to make", Ron hissed in annoyance, "maybe you should focus on what you right now".

"And what am I exactly Ronald", Romana asked sharply.

"A little quick to anger", Ron snorted, drawing a glare from Romana, "it's a valid point", the Time Lady wanted to disagree but she really couldn't. "You're definitely smart, willing to stand up for what's right, maybe a little brooding but at the same time still willing to see the positive side". Romana smiled slightly, it seemed that Ron knew herself better than she even knew herself, "You're not bad looking for someone of your age either".

"Oi I'm barely middle aged by Time Lord standards", Romana cried but soon there was a small smile on her face, "Thank you Ron, somehow you always know the right things to say". By now the Grangers/Wilkins were long gone, probably on the green of the hole, "We probably should go, there's nothing left to do here".

Ron sighed and began to trudge alongside the Time Lady, "Do we have to, it's depressing watching Fred lying in a hospital bed", he gently grasped Romana's arm, "is there nothing you can do, work some Time Lord magic to cure him?" he asked in hope.

"Trust me Ron I've been thinking about nothing else", Romana sighed, "most medical packs I have on the TARDIS will only work on Time Lords. We would need the best hospital and staff in the universe to help Fred".

Romana suddenly paused as a light bulb came on inside her head. A faint memory of a history lesson at the Academy together with the Doctor's next destination triggered a connection, "New New York", she muttered, "out of the ashes of the Sisters of Plenitude rose the greatest medical establishment humanity has ever seen", she added with a broad smile. Grasping Ron's hand she practically dragged him through the trees, "Come on Ron, we haven't got a moment to spare".

"What the hell are you doing?" Ron cried, struggling to keep up with the Time Lady.

"I'm going to save you brother", she replied firmly, a steely determination filling her body. Both Ron and the Doctor were right, she needed to focus on the present rather than dwell on the past. She was going to start the first day of her new life by healing Fred Weasley.

 _ **A/N –**_ _This chapter didn't really fit in for with the previous arc or the new one, hence I've created it as a standalone chapter._

 _I had a review a few days ago commenting that my interpretation of Romana seemed a little inconsistent, perhaps very human. It's a fair comment and I have no problem with that honest criticism. Two reasons for that I think, firstly the fragmented way I've written this story so far probably hasn't helped. Secondly I kinda intended her to start off that way, after all she's been human for nearly 18 years and that's bound to have an impact. Plus the effects of the Time War after still heavily influencing her actions and personality._

 _This is going to be a loooong project, basically everything up to now can be seen as an prologue to the saga of Romana IV. You should see her personality solidify moving forward starting with a trip to New Earth to save Fred's life. Thank you Asteria25 for your feedback, hope you continue to enjoy._


	29. So Good They Named It Twice

_Chapter 28 – So Good They Named It Twice_

A giddy Romana flicked and pulled on numerous levers on the console, eager to return to Hogwarts as quickly as possible. The Time Lady couldn't believe that she hadn't thought about the medical facility in New New York before. The Doctor had even mentioned the city in passing but nothing had mentally clicked until a few minutes ago. Unloading some of her burdens regarding her human life had allowed her to think clearly and efficiently. If the doctors and medical researchers at the most advanced human hospital in all creation couldn't help Fred, no one could.

Unfortunately Fred's youngest brother wasn't sharing her enthusiasm, mainly because she hadn't filled him in on the complete plan, "Can you slow down", the red head cried, "I don't want to get lost in time or something".

"Sorry Ronald but we haven't got a moment to spare", Romana stated, pulling back on the flight lever, "no time for politeness either, I'm landing the TARDIS in the Hospital Wing". There was a small groan from the Time Rotor as the TARDIS struggled to keep up with her pilot's commands. The noise sounded very familiar to Romana, "Don't you start that", she sniffed towards her ship, "I haven't left the brakes on".

"Could you at least explain to me what you're planning?" Ron grasped for a railing as the time ship lurched slightly.

Romana hit another couple of buttons, landing inside the castle was proving difficult due to the ambient magic in the place, "I'd rather explain it to everyone, saves time that way". She felt the ship come to a gentle halt and she applied the parking brakes carefully, "I'd better go first, the Matron is not going to be happy with me". Sure enough Madam Pomphrey wasn't impressed with Romana landing the TARDIS in her hospital but Romana quickly deflected her annoyance with news of a possible solution to save Fred.

Fortunately most of the Weasley's were in attendance, the only exception being Percy who was dealing with the reconstruction of the Ministry. That was good for Romana who would only have to explain this once, "Mr and Mrs Weasley", she began, "with your permission I'd like to take Fred to the most advanced hospital in the known universe". The Weasley's stiffened slightly, clearly there were uncertain about allowing their son to leave the Hospital Wing, "I promise he will have the best care available and I will protect him with my life".

"I don't doubt that Romana", Mr Weasley stated in response, "but your doctor friend seemed to be certain there was nothing we could do to help him".

"And she was correct", Romana replied, "but Martha only has medical knowledge up to the twenty first century. The hospital where I propose to take Fred has a lot more knowledge and experience at their disposal".

"So you're taking him to a future hospital", Harry was part of the group, his arm resting on the shoulder of a pale faced Ginny, "doesn't that contravene some kind of rules regarding time travel".

Romana couldn't disagree with Harry on that point, technically she was taking Fred out of his natural timeline to receive treatment. If Gallifrey and the High Council were still around they would be furious with the suggestion but they weren't, "What's the point of being one of the few remaining Time Lords if you can't bend the rules on occasions?"

Her grim statement was met with a couple of disapproving looks from the assembled redheads, "Time is continually in flux", the Time Lady continued, "the only events I can't touch are fixed points, things that are so important to the time stream that even being there could have catastrophic implications for the universe".

"Is that your way of saying that Fred isn't important?" George asked bitterly.

The Time Lady winced slightly, she hadn't met to imply that but after revisiting her words it probably did sound like that. "Everyone is important George", Romana said carefully, "but not everyone in existence is critical to the space time continuum. Taking Fred from this time period to New New York won't have any drastic consequences for us". The group seemed placated but the Weasley's still looked apprehensive, "I'm not going to take him by myself, a few of you can come along".

"You still haven't told us where you're going", Bill answered, "perhaps if you started with that we can decide on the best course of action for Fred".

Nodding in acknowledgement of the oldest Weasley sibling, Romana began explaining her idea, "During my time at the Academy, I learned about the most advanced human hospital in existence. It was during the great human renaissance approximately five billion years into the future". She paused her monologue to allow the gasps of surprise to die down from the gathered witches and wizards, "This Earth was gone but humanity found a similar planet and established a colony there, giving it the imaginative name of New Earth".

Ron slowly raised his hand but Romana anticipated his question, "Like any star the Sun has a finite lifespan, around ten billion years give or take a decade. The Sun is roughly in the middle of its life and in five billion years time it will die in a massive supernova, taking Earth and most of the Solar System with it".

"Can't you do anything to stop it?" Harry asked.

"Remember what I said about a fixed point Harry", Romana stated, "the end of the Solar System is one of them. Don't be too disheartened though, humans will have colonised other planets and galaxies by this stage. The planet will have been safely evacuated so there's no danger to anyone on the surface".

Romana could feel the unease from the assembled magic wielders. She was discussing the eventual death of their planet in such matter of fact terms but to her, all these events had been established long ago. Humans thought in such a linear fashion when it came to time, to Romana some events of the future were no more malleable than those in the past. They weren't here to discuss the end of Earth though, this was about Fred's well being, "Getting us back on track, the finest medical doctors, nurses and researchers established themselves on New Earth, setting up a hospital in New New York".

"And you think they'll be able to help my Freddie?" Mrs Weasley asked with hope in her voice.

"I don't know", Romana sighed, "but they're probably your best chance". She watched the group pass each other a few nervous glances, this wouldn't be an easy decision for them to take, "Talk it over amongst yourselves, I'll wait in the TARDIS for your answer. Please don't rush your decision though". Leaving the contemplative Weasley's behind, Romana stepped back into her TARDIS and began preparing it for flight. She didn't want to waste any potential flight time calculating the correct trajectory. Fred could do with all the minutes she could spare.

Whilst she made the inputs Romana wondered if was doing the correct thing. After the Battle of Hogwarts, Kingsley asked her to be a special liaison between the magical and muggle world. If word got out that she had taken Fred to the distant future to get treated for his injuries, could that open the floodgates for others to ask for similar treatment? It was one of the reasons that the magical community kept themselves hidden away, fear of ordinary human bombarding them with requests to make their lives easier.

That was an interesting moral dilemma though, muggle and magical were all human and although some diseases were unique to wizards, some were shared across both. Scientists had been searching for a cancer care for decades but could the solution lie with the magical community? During her time as a human, Romana remembered Madam Pomphrey stating that healing potions wouldn't work as well on muggles because they're designed to feed and replenish an individual's magical core. There must be a point where magic and technology cross over though and Romana resolved to research the past, present and future of the wizarding world in greater depth.

Several minutes past before the TARDIS door opened, revealing Bill and Fleur Weasley, "Hope you don't mind but I'm bring Fleur along with me", the eldest Weasley stated.

"More like I wouldn't let him go alone", the French witch smiled at her husband, "who knows what trouble he would get into by himself".

Romana nodded at the couple just as George arrived with Fred's body on a stretcher. The co-owner of Weasley's Wizard Wheezes had levitated the piece of hospital equipment and was in the process of navigating it through the door, "Just head that way", Romana pointed towards the rear door of the console room, "the TARDIS will direct you straight to the med bay". George barely flickered an acknowledgement, choosing to calmly and mutely follow the instructions, "I do hope this works", the Time Lady sighed once George was out of earshot.

"You're not alone", Bill agreed, "he hasn't been the same since the Battle", he quietly took hold of Fleur's hand, "none of us have really".

"War does that to you", Romana murmured, trying to push the dark thoughts of the Time War to the back of her mind. She was semi successful, something she was claiming as a victory. It soon became apparent to her that no one else was following George into her ship, "Is this everyone?" she asked.

Bill nodded, "Mum and Dad didn't want to come, they're not convinced that travelling through time and space is particularly safe". Romana raised an eyebrow but tried not to take too much offense, "Harry chose to spend some time with Ginny and Ron opted to stay behind too, said something about having enough adventure for one lifetime".

"Fair enough", Romana stated and quickly pulled down on the flight lever for her ship. It would feel a little strange, going on a adventure without Harry and Ron but it was bound to happen at some point.

For a couple of pureblood wizards, Bill and Fleur didn't seem too alarmed by the general noises and vibrations generated by the time ship. If anything they seemed to be fascinated by the whole experience, "How does this work?" Fleur asked as she inspected the console, "travelling through time and space in this machine?"

"Ah now that is a very good question", Romana began with smile, "unfortunately the science involved is too complex to express in any known human language. I would have to invent several new words, sounds, expressions and even new letters just to cover the basics". She watched carefully as a mixture of shock and disappointment flashed across the blonde's face, "Put simply it harnesses the energy of a collapsing star to disappear in one place and reappear in another".

"Sounds simple", Bill nodded.

"It is, so simple that technically that explanation is incorrect", Romana replied with a small shrug, "would it be easier if I said it was magic", she added with a mischievous smile. Turning back to the console she noticed that they were approaching their destination. Making a couple of adjustments to the controls, she pulled back on the brakes to land the TARDIS safely, "There we are, billions of years into the future and a new planet to boot".

"We've arrived?" Fleur stated in shock, "but that hardly took anytime at all".

Romana smiled, "Like I said magic", she unlocked the doors with a flick of a switch, "do you want to take a look outside?"

The married couple looked at each other, "Is it safe out there?" Bill asked.

"Oh perfectly safe", Romana quickly checked the readout from the scanner, "might want to take an umbrella, rain's forecast for later in the day".

With a look of trepidation Bill and Fleur stepped towards the door and out into the new world. Romana counted to twenty in her head to give the couple plenty of time to take in their new surroundings. She quickly checked that her screwdriver was in her jacket pocket before following them outside. Instantly Romana's nostrils were hit with the smell of apples from the grass. She took a deep breath through her nose, these first few steps onto a new planet were always her favourite part of any trip. Judging by the neon green symbol above a nearby door, the TARDIS had landed directly opposite the entrance to the main hospital in New New York.

Romana should've been happy that help was nearly at hand for Fred but something was tugging on her time sense. Something was about to happen but she couldn't figure out what it was. It wasn't an impending fixed point, the sensation wasn't strong enough. Deciding it wasn't worth worrying about for now Romana stepped in between Bill and Fleur and stated, "Welcome to New Earth Weasley's, shall we get Fred booked in?" With a small smile towards the pair, they stepped through the door.


	30. Ignorance Is Bliss

_Chapter 29 – Ignorance Is Bliss_

The automatic doors swooshed opened as Romana led the group of magicals into the hospital. Her senses were immediately assaulted by a chemical smell that only seemed to exist in medical facilities. As she approached the end of a queue, the Time Lady was surprised to see how busy the hospital was. Emergency departments tended to get spikes in activity but the main foyer was almost full to capacity. A small frown formed on her forehead as she surveyed the crowd, some didn't appear to be sick or injured at all. Not overly surprising, hypochondria wasn't unique to humans after all.

What was curious were the majority of people in the waiting area had a bizarre, spaced out expression almost frozen into their face. Something like this tended to be narcotic in nature but Romana had never seen anything on this scale before. Her feet began to twitch, she wanted to investigate but her primary responsibly was to Fred. Once he was safely booked in, she could take a look around, "St Mungo's isn't this busy after a Qudditch match", Bill commented, "is something going on?"

Romana racked her brains, her knowledge of New Earth wasn't the best. A voice in the back of her head told her she was missing something though and desperately tried to cast her mind back to her Academy lessons, "I don't like the way they're looking at me", Fleur whispered to her husband.

Drawn out of her thoughts, Romana scanned the crowd immediately around Fleur. Some of them were giggling silently to themselves whilst others let out a strangled cry of happiness. The Frenchwoman's Veela heritage usually had some effect on the men in the surrounding area, however, in this waiting area it wasn't just the men affected. Women and other alien species eyed the blonde like a starving man would a piece of steak. Curiously it wasn't a lecherous stare though, more a desperate, yearning gaze. That was the best way Romana could think to describe it, "Can't you do something to move this along", George said impatient, "my brother is dying".

"Aren't we all buddy", a grey skinned creature that Romana recognised as a Mercanian. Short in stature, close to a Goblin in size, they were the indigenous species to the nearest planet to New Earth. Leaning almost comically on the top of his head was a human male, his eyes almost glazed over, "Been here nearly an hour already", the Mercanian added.

"What's wrong with your friend?" Romana commented, "he looks almost catatonic".

The Mercanian snorted with laughter, "Where you been for the last few days, whole boroughs have been affected almost overnight", he glanced over towards Fleur, "and what are you my pretty, I've never felt anything like you before".

"Keep your eyes away from my wife", Bill snarled with anger, his head reaching into his coat for his wand.

"Please no fighting inside the hospital", a calm voice stated. Romana turned around and spotted a red haired human female dressed in green scrubs, "Any more trouble and I'll have to ask you to leave.

Romana's party went silent immediately, the Mercanian though merely sniffed with derision, "Nothing you can do for my friend anyway", with that parting shot he turned away.

"Perhaps it would be best if you stepped out the queue for a moment", the red head said to Romana's group, "your friend seems to be causing an unexpected reaction".

"I'm not doing it on purpose", Fleur cried, almost insulted by the woman.

"I never said you were", the red head replied calmly, "merely stating the obvious", Romana wanted to disagree but she really couldn't. Something about Fleur's presence was causing an adverse reaction amongst the crowd, "Please step into my office, all of you", she added.

Romana and the others weaved their way through the crowds, underneath the central set of stairs and into a quiet corridor. The woman opened a door with her swipe card and beckoned them into her office. The room was exactly what Romana would expect from a hospital, a single desk, barren white walls and minimal clutter, "In the commotion I forgot to introduce myself", the woman began, "Doctor Alice Van Genkle, chief medical officer of New New York hospital".

"Pleasure to meet you Doctor", Romana nodded in greeting, "I'm Romana and these are my friends Bill, Fleur and George Weasley along with the patient", she pointed at the floating stretcher, "Fred Weasley".

Doctor Van Genkle quickly looked Fred over, raising each of his eyelids, "Minimal brain activity detected, I can see why you brought him here". She sat behind her desk and led out a heavy sigh, "Unfortunately we're unable to help at this time".

"What do you mean unable to help?" George snapped, "this is a hospital isn't it?"

"Indeed it is", Van Genkle replied dryly, "however we've been somewhat inundated over the last few days. It's seems that the latest wonder drug is having some unforeseen side effects".

Romana frowned, "Wonder drug", she muttered before remembering exactly what Van Genkle was referring to, "drug patches created by the Nakatomi Corporation, created in an attempt to make traditional medicine obsolete".

"Your first time in New New York I take it?" Doctor Van Genkle smiled, "five years ago the first Nakatomi patches went on the market and I'll admit they worked wonders. Depression, psychosis and other mental disorders eliminated almost overnight". The Doctor leaned forwards and rested her chin on her hands, "Unfortunately it didn't take long for rogue patches to enter circulation".

"And these weren't all for medicinal purposes I assume?" Romana asked, even though she already knew the answer.

Doctor Van Genkle nodded, "What you witnessed in the foyer was the after affects of Bliss, possibly the most potent of the drug patches on the black market at the moment". The red head pushed a button on her desk and activated a hidden screen on the wall, "The patch educes a state of euphoria in the wearer lasting anywhere from a few minutes to several hours. The user is venerable not just from the patch but the paralysing affects of the drug itself".

"Unable to move to defend themselves or escape from danger", Bill nodded sagely, "forgive my ignorance but why can't you just take the patches off?"

Romana smirked in Bill's direction, the same question was on the tip of her tongue, "The drug stimulates the central nervous system", Doctor Van Genkle replied, "if the stimuli is removed suddenly it sends the body into shock. Several people have died in just such a manner over the last few weeks alone". The red head paused in her explanation for a moment before continuing, "The effects of the drug are cumulative, the activation agent doesn't get broken down by the body. Each use leaves more of the agent behind, making the effects even more potent".

"This is all very well", Romana interrupted, "but this isn't helping my friend", she leaned a little closer to the woman, "there must be something you can do?"

Doctor Van Genkle sighed, "All the wards are full, if we had any beds spare we would've have people queuing up in the waiting area".

Romana chewed her lip, debating the best course of action. A small part of her wanted to use the TARDIS to skip forward to place in time where the hospital wasn't so busy. Unfortunately that morally questionable plus finding out more about this Bliss patch was really intriguing. That left her with one card to play, "I didn't want to do this", the Time Lady began rummaging in her pockets, "but I must insist that my friend is seen as a matter of urgency".

The Time Lady eventually found a small wallet which she opened and flashed to Doctor Van Genkle. The red head looked at the contents of the wallet and then at Romana, "I apologise", she bowed towards the Time Lady, "if I had known who you were Senator-"

"No need to apologise", Romana waived away her apology and pocketed the wallet, "the best apology would be a bed for my friend".

"I'm terribly sorry Senator Romana but there really are no free beds", Doctor Van Genkle's eyes suddenly widened, "I do have a more unorthodox solution if you would like to follow me". The group began to move towards the door but the red head stopped them, "Unfortunately I'm going to have to ask your friend to stay here", she indicated towards Fleur, "until we determine why the patients are reacting to her presence".

Romana had a retort on her lips ready to fire but the blonde spoke first, "As you wish doctor", she nodded, "my husband will remain with me if that's acceptable".

The red head nodded, "Very well", she turned back to Romana, "if you would like to follow me".

The Time Lady followed the doctor out the office and through the corridor. Now she knew about Bliss, she suspected that Fleur natural allure was reacting with the drug in the patients bodies. How she could explain this to a doctor five billion years into the future without revealing the truth would be difficult. Once Fred was receiving help from the hospital she could lend her brain towards countering Bliss and clearing the patients out the hospital.

After walking for a few minutes they reached a door which Van Genkle opened with her swipe card, "This lift will take you someone who can help", she said mysteriously.

The lift was narrow but long enough to accommodate the stretch plus two others. It didn't look like it saw a lot of use though, judging by the lack of smudges on the buttons inside, "Are you not coming with us doctor?" Romana asked.

The red head shook her head, "Hospital rules forbid it", she replied grimly, "now if you'll excuse me". With barely an acknowledgement she turned around and walked back down the corridor.

Romana watched her retreat with a curious look on her face, "Well that was unusual", she looked at the lift with a shrug, "better see where this leads I suppose".

"Are you sure this is the best idea?" George stated.

"Not really but we haven't got much choice", Romana sighed, "get your wand at the ready just in case". The red head nodded and slowly pulled his wand from his pocket. Cautiously Romana led them into the lift, waiting for the doors to close. The tension was lifted almost immediately when the metal structure began to move as some gentle lift music played, "Still have this stuff in the future, that's good to know", she commented on the tuneful muzak.

"What was in that wallet you showed that doctor?" George asked curiously. Romana smiled and pulled the aforementioned wallet from her pocket. Inside was a blank white plastic card with just her face, "I don't understand" the wizard shook his head.

"It's my diplomatic card issued when I became President", Romana replied, "it's a more advanced version of psychic paper. I flash this at someone and it affects their brainwaves to show the relevant diplomatic identification for the time zone I'm in. New Earth has a Senate so Doctor Van Genkle saw the identification for a Senator".

George whistled, "Impressive, the things I could've done with this".

"Which is why it's staying firmly in my jacket", Romana tucked it away, "only really works for Time Lords anyway. Could work for humans but I would need to modify the psychic field which would require a lot of work".

The lift pinged, indicating arrival at their destination. The doors slid open to reveal a humanoid cat dressed in grey robe. An alarmed George pointed his wand at the cat lady but Romana quickly slapped his wrist, "Don't be rude George", she scolded, "that's no way to greet a Matron of the Order".

"Novice still", the cat creature bowed her head, "I wear the robes of a Matron on a technically, I will hold the rank of Novice until I've redeemed myself". Romana frowned in confusion, this wasn't the time for riddles, "I am Novice Hame", the woman greeted, "I was told to expect your arrival".

"Good to see that Doctor Van Genkle called ahead", Romana smiled.

Novice Hame shook her head, "She didn't, my patient has been speaking about your arrival for days". Now Romana really was confused, she didn't know anyone in this time period to her knowledge, "Please follow me all will become clear, you can leave your brother here", she said to George, "he will be perfectly safe".

George reluctantly left Fred behind as Romana followed after Novice Hame. The room was very spacious if poorly lid, the only light coming from some dim bulbs on the wall and a faint glow around the corner. Novice Hame was heading in that direction, "I've never seen him this excited before", the cat commented, "this is the most activity he's shown since I've known him".

"Just who is this person exactly?" Romana asked. She soon got her answer when she turned the corner, "Well that's different", she gasped.

Sitting in pride of place in the room was a giant glass container which contained an oversized and humanoid looking head. Romana couldn't be sure since the head was rather stoic but it seemed to be smiling, _"Lady Romana",_ it spoke telepathically to her, _"it's good that you are finally here"._ A deep line formed on Romana's forehead as she frowned in confusion, " _I see you are confused",_ the head chuckled, _"this is the first time you have met me but I met you a long time ago. Allow me to introduce myself, I am the Face of Boe"._

 _ **A/N –**_ _This takes place between the Tenth Doctor's two visits to New Earth. Can Romana stop the Bliss drug patch before life in New New York is wiped out, therefore rewriting Doctor Who canon? (and also history I suppose)_


End file.
